Highs and Lows

Done so many "reviews" and crap recently that it's time to get personal for a bit:

Highs

1 - Damn Yankees is progressing well. Personally, I think it's one of the best acting jobs I've ever done. I'm playing a character who, though similar in temperament to me, is completely different in mannerisms. So, yeah, I'm pleased.

2 - The new poetry notebook has made me a little giddy. I've gotten a lot more writing done than I would have otherwise. Plus, I have all of my old drafts right handy this way, so it's been a good process.

3 - I'm actually getting to the point where I want to start writing a comment - probably based on these li'l guys:

I've actually done a sort of prequel sketch with a confused looking father-figure (who looks a little like me in boxers and a wife-beater) trying to assemble the robot on his own - with the lamp neatly foreshadowed in the background. I don't know how far I'll get with it, but I'd like to give it a go.

4 - Getting revved up to start writing prose again, too. I have an idea for a crazy little narrative that will allow me to indulge my ADD a little bit by including a bunch of one-page stories. It'll be a challenge, but I think I'll give it a go.

5 - Halloween's just around the corner. I'm thinking of going as a white rapper. Thoughts?

Lows

1 - The big numero uno HAS to go to this cold that's wreaking havoc on my brain. I started feeling a bit weird on Sunday night, then went out and did Damn Yankees with a sore throat - which actually went all right. Ever since, though, things have gotten weirder. My voice is simply shot - I can barely speak well. I've been feeling better every day, but sounding worse. Hopefully, I'll be back in shape by tomorrow night; otherwise, "Heart" will have to be sung in the bass register.

2 - I'm in debt - probably for the first time since college. My stupid car (bless its little stupid heart) has a perpetual, irreperable oil leak, which apparently messed up a lot of the internal systemy things. It's costing me $600 to repair - and I don't have $600. So, yeah, I'm making monthly payments on my car repairs, and it sucks.

3 - I was offered a chance to join up with the cast of Little Women out at the Empress Theatre. Now, I'm not overly familiar with the show, but the music that I've heard is... well, it's actually pretty good. Unfortunately, I had to pass. The Empress, you see, is in Magna, a good 20 minute drive from my apartment. I drive out there already for improv and family get-togethers (and, right now, Damn Yankees) about five days a week. I'm losing a lot of money to gas, so I had to pass - give me some time to recuperate just before the holiday season.

Horrorshow: The Ring

The nice thing about being laid up sick is that you don't really get hung up on the amount of time you spend watching movies. So here's another one.

The Ring has always been a movie I've been curious about. I remember when the movie first came out - I'd just started college, and I overheard the following exchange between two single returned missionaries just older than me:

Guy 1: Hey, have you seen that movie The Ring yet?

Guy 2: No way, man. I'm trying to stay as far away from rings as possible.

A sentiment I often find myself echoing.

Anyway, there's a movie here somewhere.

So I found the beginning of The Ring to be a bit... well, stupid. The two blonde sorority girls basically give away the whole plot of the movie right there ("So, like, have you heard about this movie that kills you. It, like totally kills you DEAD. Omagawsh!"), when I think I would have wanted a bit more suspense. Also, there were a couple of parts in the middle when I found myself nodding off - but a lot of that might have had to do with me being sick and all that.

Still, when the movie was over, I stared at my phone, terrified that it was actually going to ring, and I hesitated getting too close to the TV when I took the disc out.

A good movie, then, I'd say.

Why I'm Still Single #16

Why I'm Still Single #15

Horrorshow Trifecta

It's been a busy week - but, apparently, not so busy that I wasn't able to squeeze in three more scary movies. Exactly HOW scary... well, I'll tell you.

First up, we've got Tim Burton's Sweeney Todd. Now, this isn't exactly a horror movie per se, but I killed all the lights in my apartment and treated it like one. Actually, if you're pretty squeamish about blood (which I am), then you might find this movie pretty scary (which I did). I had been told that the blood was very cartoony, so I thought I'd be able to handle it. Well, the gore's definitely over-the-top, but it's extremely gruesome - cartoony is NOT the word I'd use.

My first encounter with Sweeney Todd was the Angela Lansbury musical, so that's more or less what I was expecting. I found that I missed a lot of the great Sondheim music that I loved from the original. The visuals (except for the blood) are great, classic Burton, so it's worth seeing for that.

Final verdict: Good movie, but not quite what I expected.

The second movie I caught is considered to be a horror classic, Rosemary's Baby. I'd been looking forward to this movie, as everything I'd heard about the story promised exactly the tense, threatening atmosphere I was so hoping to find in a horror film. Sadly, here I was a bit disappointed.

For a story about a woman pregnant with the devil's child, I expected more suspense. The ending is nice and tense, but there's not a whole lot of action to carry me through to the end. Rosemary gets a little sick-looking, sure, and there are a couple of moments when she devours raw meat that helped to create a real feeling of unease. The problem, though, is that we know from the beginning how things are going to end. It's no real surprise when we find out who the father of the baby is, because we saw the whole thing, right from the inception.

Which leads to another criticism I had with the film - it's unnecessarily graphic. The female lead gets a couple of full-frontal shots, which feel completely tacked on and irrelevant. Again, that's probably a weird complaint, especially when "devil rape" is the central action in the story. The nudity doesn't really serve to shock or make anyone feel uncomfortable - it's just sort of there.

I've been told I should be more forgiving of the film and consider the impact it must have had when it first came out - and, granted, the audience of 1968 was probably more shocked by nudity than I was. Still, I think the best movies don't need time to serve as an excuse - they're great REGARDLESS of when you watch them.

Case in point: Psycho.

There's a reason this is considered to be one of the best movies of all time. It's truly fantastic. The entire movie works to build a growing sense of unease that completely rocks the audience.

I wish I'd seen this movie before hearing the whole plot synopsis - that way, the surprise reveals would have been more effective. Alfred Hitchcock, though, is a master, and I found myself shouting in surprise (yes, shouting, alone in my apartment) at every twist. The famous shower scene is every bit as effective as you've heard without actually showing the naked woman (take note, Rosemary's Baby).

I strongly recommend Psycho for a Halloween viewing. The movie now belongs on my list of all-time favorites.

Giant Sized Daily Sketches

9.29.10-9.30.10 - Pay no attention to the woman in the background. She sucks.

I had a blast drawing the angry dude with the sponge.

I've been trying to draw more scenery pieces and things like that. I feel like I did an okay job on the sinks, even without referencing an honest-to-goodness sink while working on it.

10.1.10-10.2.10 - This... may be my new favorite sketch of all time. I just posted that other sketch so I wouldn't only be posting one.

Seriously - kids in a garage building a homemade robot out of scrap metal, chains, and a LAMP? That's just fun.

Besides, LOOK at that robot. He's ADORABLE (if I do say so myself).

So I Forgot One...

Remember yesterday's list of weird banned books stories? Well, I left one off...

2010: A California school district pulled the Merriam-Webster Dictionary because a parent complained that it contains the term "oral sex."

Really?

Of COURSE the dictionary's gonna contain the term "oral sex." The idea behind a dictionary is to provide a definition for EVERY word or phrase in the English language. Banning dictionaries because they contain an idea you find offensive or innappropriate is an Orwellian level of stupidity.

There are always going to be ideas out there that we disagree with for moral, intellectual, or political reasons. It's right and natural for us to be upset - and, sometimes, even offended - by these ideas. However, we can't PRETEND that they don't exist and hope they go away, even for the sake of our children.

Heck, I'm going to say ESPECIALLY for the sake of our children. If you want to share your values with children, it's important for you to be able to explain those things that go AGAINST those values and talk about them in a way that's meaningful, respectful of the subject matter, and accurate. And, yeah, that means that you'll probably have to use the words "oral sex," "marijuana," and, on occasion, "Ke$ha."