Everybody Loves Saturday Night

movie: smart people

This is primarily for Carolyn--I started writing an email about the movie and then thought it could be a post. I've been meaning to write more pop culturey things here but haven't been very good about remembering that when I face the blank Typepad page. So anyway. You all get to share in my superior taste and judgment now.

Movie ticket prices in Manhattan are between $11 and $11.50. It's absolutely ridiculous, but it has made me even pickier about which movies I choose to see in the theater and which ones I can wait to rent. There are certain exceptions, like when you get together with a friend and choose to see a movie, but then there isn't any "must see" movie playing, so you choose one that looks interesting, that's received a fair share of positive reviews, and has a cast of which you approve.

Such was Smart People. I'd read a decent review and actually had been looking forward to this movie for some time because a) I really do love Dennis Quaid, and b) the movie is set against an academic backdrop, with Quaid playing a literature professor specializing in the Victorians. Check that: a grizzled, disillusioned, completely pompous and self-absorbed professor for whom teaching no longer holds any pleasure--if it ever did. In other words, me in 20 years had I stayed with the profession. Academic stories hold that sort of fascination for me--I'm always curious if they're going to reflect my own experiences.

And this movie, for the most part, does. What it ultimately reminded me of was David Lodge's university-set novels (down to the two-word title), and it made me wonder if this was the kind of story Lodge would tell if he were American. I thought that in particular the purely college scenes--Quaid teaching, meeting with committees--were very well done and true to life. It was extremely gratifying to have the movie start with Quaid lecturing on the character of Mr. Casaubon in Middlemarch (which as some of you know is one of my very favorite novels), which clues those who have read that novel into Quaid's character right away.

Ellen Page plays the college-bound daughter who has absorbed most of the house-related responsibilities like laundry and cooking since her mother died. When this actually happened is rather vague, but what I liked about her situation is that it felt...rather Victorian. It's clear that in addition to working her ass off in school in order to please her academic father, she also sees herself as his helpmate--much as Dorothea Brooke in Middlemarch fantasizes about helping Casaubon with his Key to All Mythologies, by positioning herself as daughter to his Milton. But it's also clear that she's very conflicted about the role that she seems to have willingly accepted--that her youth is rebelling from her over-tuned sense of responsibility. Though much has been made of Ellen Page in this movie--that it's "Juno 2" or "Juno's sequel," and it's true that the two characters are both sarcastic and quick-tongued, I honestly don't think it's fair to layer Juno's success on this movie. To me her character in Smart People is completely different.

My main problem with this movie was the romantic relationship between Quaid and Sarah Jessica Parker. It apparently derives from her old schoolgirl crush on him, when he was her professor. But he crushed her hopes then, prompting her to switch majors from English to Biology/pre-med. I never fully bought their attraction to each other. I never really got on board with the way the relationship progressed--it just wasn't believable and frankly, it was a little disturbing. Is she interested just because it's the fulfillment of a fantasy she may have had 20 years ago? Anyway. Not a fan of the romance in this movie.

But a big fan of Thomas Hayden Church. Jackie and I agreed that he was the best part of this movie, and ultimately the reason I would say go see it. He plays Quaid's brother (which Quaid consistently amends to "adopted brother," ala Royal Tenenbaums), a completely unreliable layabout with some rather unfortunate facial hair, and yet someone who doesn't fall into the "unreliable layabout = amoral skeeze" trap. Now that I'm writing this, actually, I realize his character is the moral center of the movie.

The trailer I linked to above really does its job well--it presents the movie's best potential, but the movie itself doesn't quite live up to it.

guess the movie

I found this meme floating around and thought it would be perfect to lead into the weekend. Here's the scoop:

1. Pick 10 of your favorite movies.
2. Find a quote from each one (go to imdb.com, or use your memory. Considering how frequently movie quotes find their way into my everyday conversation, I mostly relied on memory, and filled in gaps with imdb.com)
3. Post the quotes here for people to guess--leave your answers in the comments, please.
4. Strike out the quotes when guessed correctly; name the person who got it right and the movie
5. Guessing rules: one movie per guesser, so everyone has a chance. Please don't cheat with Google or imdb.com!

Hard as it was to limit myself to 10, I opted to use lines I find particularly funny, and gave myself leave to use a snippet of dialog as my one quote for a couple movies. I think some of them will be obvious . . . but maybe not? Or maybe they all are? Have at it, and have fun!

1. "Whenever they raise the postage, people need the little stamps." Carole got this right away: it's from Fargo! ("No, just think I'm gonna barf" was my other option.) Yes, it's true--I have many favorite Coen Brothers movies, but Fargo remains at the top of the list.

2. "Ooh, Snickers." Extra quote hint: "May I remind you that it does not say 'RSVP' on the Statue of Liberty!" Pam got it: Clueless! (Hello.) This would be another Jane Austen interpretation that I think totally nailed it.

3. "I now declare this bridge open." Whew! Wendy got this one: It's from A Hard Day's Night. This movie is filled with little non sequitur lines of giddiness and fun, and it's just one of the most joyful movies out there. Sad that the reality of their touring wasn't nearly as fun.

4.  "Well, the universe is everything, and if it's expanding, someday it will break apart and that will be the end of everything."

     "What is that your business?" Jessica got it: Annie Hall. A former litmus-test movie--if you didn't like this movie, I really wanted nothing to do with you. Once I went on a date with this guy, and when we got back to my place my roommate and her boyfriend were watching this. My date watches for a while, then says, "Does that guy ever stop talking?" That was the end of that.

5. "I'd sell my grandmother for a drink. And you know how I love my grandmother." Kathy guessed right: it's Philadelphia Story! Which is, by the way, in case this should come up again, my very favorite movie of all time, ever. At least for the moment.

6. "We find the defendants incredibly guilty." Yay, Iris! It's from The Producers. The original Producers or, in other words, the good one. I think this is one of the funniest movies ever made. Seriously? I could write a whole post of nothing but Producers quotes. When you got it, baby, flaunt it! Flaunt it!

7. "Find a happy place! Find a happy place! Find a happy place!" Strizzy named it: Finding Nemo! This is what the starfish says when Darla keeps tapping on the tank. It has also become a mantra for me, for reasons I don't want to get into right now. Remind me to tell you what my happy place is, though. It's pretty rad.

8. "Why would a guy wanna marry a guy?"

    "Security!"

    Extra quote hint: "Look how she moves...It's like jell-o on springs."  Sonja has correctly identified this movie as Some Like it Hot. I vividly remember the first time I saw this movie, in my friend Justin's dorm room our freshman year. It was one of those "You've NEVER SEEN this movie?!" moments that took us from the cafeteria straight to the video so that this gaping hole in my cinema knowledge could be immediately filled. Thanks, Justin, wherever you are now.

9. "You know, in a situation like this, there's a high potentiality for the common motherfucker to bitch out." The judges are ruling on this one . . . and they find that because The Michael was not present at the time of this post-writing, nor present during any subsequent discussion of said post, credit is due to him for correctly guessing Out of Sight, which I made him watch a year or so ago.

10. "Perhaps Margaret is right. Piracy is our only option." Stephanie got it: Sense & Sensibility, one of the two--no, three--adaptations of Austen that got it absolutely perfect. Somewhat embarrassing factoid about me: I own the published version of this screenplay, which comes with Emma Thompson's diary kept during the shooting. The diary: so entertaining, and not at all in that weird voyeur way.

rent this DVD

A few months ago, I noticed that Film Forum was showing a documentary on Helvetica, by Gary Hustwit. I really wanted to see it, for a couple reasons:

1. I love docs about stuff most people take for granted or don't notice at all.

2. Typeface fascinates me. A few years ago The New Yorker did an article on Matthew Carter, the man behind Verdana, and it's one of the better articles I've read in recent memory. (You can read an excerpt here.)

Reactions among the people I told, "I really want to see that documentary on Helvetica" were varied. Most people were bemused and/or skeptical. And I wound up not seeing it at the theater.

I watched it last night, and it's as interesting and fascinating as I'd hoped. Helvetica is a corporate type, used by Crate & Barrel, Target, American Airlines (which was, I learned, the first time someone put two words together as one word, AmericanAirlines), Toyota, IRS tax forms . . .and movie titles . . . and the NYC Subway signs. I learned the history behind Helvetica's creation and name, and learned that there are graphic designers out there who are as vehemently in support or against the ubiquitous use of Helvetica as knitters and crocheters are about the use of, let's say, acrylic.

It awakened the cultural critic that had been resting since I left academics, with discussions of the ideology of typeface and what Helvetica came to reflect, represent, and symbolize to several generations.

So I recommend it, especially to anyone who doesn't think about typeface or font ever. You may find some commentary really out there, but I guarantee it will change the way you think about signs, advertising, logos, and so on.

The movie website is here.

whoops

Did I say tomorrow? I meant "by the end of the week." It's been a flurry of organization and work here, and I've noticed that when I am getting physical things organized (like clothes, yarn, shoes, books) my capacity for mental organization, viz-a-viz getting thoughts down on paper in some sensible way . . . is somehow lessened. So focused am I on getting shit done that my thoughts tend to come out as "shelf together now" and "where put drawers."

Before I left for Minnesota I bought a bunch of organizing aids. A few shelving units, a cheap yet nice wire frame 5-drawer thingy that was the easiest thing I have ever put together, and a set of cloth boxes that will fit into the shelf units and preserve that which is inside from the dust of Brooklyn.

This is the dustiest city I have ever known. Seriously.

Half of my broken dining room chairs are now gone. I've been putting one out with each trash pick up. I'm thinking of starting with just two new chairs, because the ones I want are going to be a little pricey for me right now, if I get them stained to match the table and hutch. And really...what would be the point of an unmatched set? Gothic Cabinet Craft has chairs that closely resemble the ones I have to discard:

I'll have to bring in a broken part of chair to have them match the stain. Ideally I would have the chairs ready by the beginning of the new year, if I can find the time to order them.

In other news, I went to see I'm Not There with Jackie the other night. I agree with a lot of what Carolyn says about it here. Thought Cate Blanchett was absolutely brilliant. Liked Christian Bale a lot as well, and give him major props for appearing not only as the dazzling young Dylan but also the pudgy afroed born-again Dylan. I didn't even mind the Richard Gere segments--it reminded me a little bit of those Fellini films I never saw. Also liked the young boy segments. I thought the scene in the hospital with Woody Guthrie was a bit heavy-handed, but I really liked the scene with the one family at the beginning, where the boy is going on and on about experiencing stuff that happened like 20 years ago, and the mom of the family looks at him and says, "Live in your own time." To me, that matched up well with the Richard Gere part, where he's also bizarrely not living in his own time. But then, no one is. I don't know...it worked for me. It's movies like this that make me love movies.

it only took a day

before I returned to my old habit of falling asleep in front of the TV before 10:00 p.m. Sad, because that's 9:00 p.m. CST, and I only did that once at the very beginning of my Chicago stay.

Then I read in bed for three hours. It's always when I think a page or two will be enough to get me dozing off when I wind up completely engrossed in whatever it is that I'm reading (which is currently Eat, Pray, Love, a gift from my aunt and uncle).

To try and counteract that, I did not get up at the crack of dawn to feed Scout, though he was mighty persistent. It's easier to ignore him when I am by myself--Michael was staying at his mom's last night because of a late work night and early morning lab, both on the Upper East Side. When Michael is home and I try to ignore Scout, Scout just goes over to Michael, who pushes him back on me. He has not learned the "push OFF the bed, not towards the middle" rule of early morning cat avoidance. But Scout and I, we have our own routine that dates back at least 12 years. And that routine let me sleep in until 7:00.

Enough about that. I put my Chicago pix up on Flickr. There aren't many, partly because there are only so many pictures one can take of a city covered in clouds:

but mostly because I was having too much fun to be bothered to record any of it.

I went shopping and got a couple new sweaters and a shiny new coat. Not shiny, really. But red! And on sale!

I had chicken from the Chicken Hut, which I highly recommend.

I went to three movies: Gone Baby Gone (well done), Enchanted (cute), and Margot at the Wedding (not cute, but intriguing. Not sure I would say it's the best movie ever, I think I liked Squid & Whale better, but I find myself still thinking about this movie days after I saw it, and that's something).

I went to a show: Over the Rhine (good show), with opening act Griffin House (OMG AWESOME). Bought two Griffin House CDs.

Found amazing coffee right around the corner from Carolyn's apartment. Intelligentsia. It's a Chicago chain with about three shops around the city. Apparently the one in her area has a line out the door on Saturday mornings. The coffee is seriously the best I've had in a long, long, long time (fortunately I can order it online!), made all the better because the baristas are trained to do a lovely leaf design when pouring the milk part into lattes and the like. I kept meaning to take a picture of it but never did. Next time.

Had a Thanksgiving dinner that couldn't be beat, with my aunt, uncle and cousins, and the same amount of food that they usually make when it's 12 people at the table. Or so it seemed. Not that I'm complaining.

And of course, there was knitting. I brought a number of projects just in case I got bored or suffered ADD, but I worked mostly on Starsky. I bought the yarn for it (Knit Picks Cadena, formerly Sierra, in Mahogany) several months ago and had actually started working on it back in September, but put it aside for whatever reason (most likely unfinished sweater guilt). I had a sleeve and the start of the back done before I left, and now the back is done

as well as a front and a half.

Close up:

I think I have to put it on hold for a little while though, because holy crap HANUKKAH IS RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER and I need to finish a couple things before I leave for Minneapolis (that's right--back to the Midwest!) to visit Joe, Jhen and the Neph.

just a bunch of stuff

la la la la la la la it's 7:44 am and I don't know what to write here, just that I want to start the day with writing. I mean something other than email writing.

I could tell you that I received my sewing machine...twice. The first one came the day I left for Rhinebeck. Then a second one came the Monday after. It was a shipping error: I only ordered one, but it got shipped twice. I have a UPS label to send the second one back, but I haven't gotten around to that yet.

I also haven't gotten around to playing with the new sewing machine. This is because I haven't gotten around to finding scrap fabric to play with.

I could also tell you that I went to see American Gangster on Monday, and I recommend it. Not the best movie I've ever seen, not the kind of movie that will make you pump your fists in the air, but a  solid, well-crafted, beautifully acted film.

Knitting continues apace. I am reaching the end of my first two skeins of Koigu for the Chevron scarf and had a moment of stupid, because I thought the whole thing took just two skeins, one of each color. So I'm at 44" on the thing, and this is all the yarn I have left:

I checked the pattern, realized that it's two skeins of each color, and felt both relief and despair, because I am really tired of knitting the damn thing. No matter how pretty it is.

I started another winter-oriented project, and this one is going much faster.

These are Rose's Wrist Warmers, based on the ones Billie Piper wears at the end of Doctor Who's second series. I knew I wanted a pair when I saw them, but never got around to making the pattern up. Thankfully someone else did. The yarn is Karabella Margrite, a DK weight yarn that I'm knitting on US 3 needles in order to get gauge. Which, by the way, I am getting perfectly. I'm modding the pattern slightly to make them long enough to cover my fingers to the second knuckle, and I did mirroring twists on either end of the diamond. I started this on Sunday, so I could have a finished pair by this weekend, if all goes according to plan.

more than eight

Last week got incredibly busy. I had plenty of knitting time and was able to finish two socks--one in both the pairs I'm currently working on. I'd put pictures up, but see, it's 5:30 am and even though the sun is almost up and the sky is clearly blue instead of that colorless splash it is right before, the light isn't making it's way into the apartment just yet for me to take pictures. Perhaps by the time I'm done writing.

Today is my fantastic mother's birthday. In the back of my head I knew it was coming, and I had plans, but I think the rest of my mind completely checked out and refused to accept that the end of June meant the beginning of July and with it, my mom's birthday. But then yesterday, with the knowledge that it was the first of July, some biological thingy kicked in and all I could think of was "mom's birthday is tomorrow."

Happy birthday, mom! I love you. I'll call you when I get home tonight.

Last month I posted a total of eight times. I want to do better than that this month.

Let's see...I watched "The Good Shepherd" over the weekend. I think I was expecting more from this movie. I think Matt Damon is an incredible actor; throughout the movie I would get tense just looking at him, knowing what lengths he was going to to keep his professional life hidden. It was impossible to get involved with any of the characters because they're so closed off from each other, and ultimately I think I need to get involved in order to like a movie.

Take the "House of Cards" trilogy, which I've almost finished (on the first episode of "The Final Cut"). There's a lot about the British government that I don't know or really understand. But it doesn't really matter, because Machiavellian tactics translate in any situation, so anything that doesn't make sense doesn't need to make sense--the point is that someone is going to get stabbed in the back (metaphorically or literally) in order for someone else to get ahead (or stay there). Francis Urquhart is really a despicable person (not least for his ultra-conservative politics)...but the story starts out with the audience sympathizing with him. He'd been promised a higher cabinet position by the incoming PM, but it's taken away. He continually addresses the camera, so he's talking to us, and it's very intimate--you feel you're getting the inside scoop at how power works, which is seductive in and of itself. Add the fact that it's Ian Richardson, who can make me giggle in solidarity just by raising an eyebrow, and the audience doesn't have a chance. So when Urquhart begins employing less and less scrupulous tactics...you cringe, but you don't want him to fail. I highly recommend this series.

Let's try that picture now:

I absolutely love this orange colorway. The purple...meh? I was expecting to love it just as much, but it's not grabbing me the same way.

I'm already thinking about the next socks...

Trailer Park

It's not like I wouldn't renew my subscription to Entertainment Weekly.  I live for my Entertainment Weekly.  And now, if it's possible, I love it even more.  I just got a renewal ploy in the mail: a DVD with scads of trailers for movies coming out this fall.  It's part of a scheme to get me to sign up for their Advance Movie Screening Program, wherein they will email me about special previews and if I bust my ass to get there on time and before anyone else, I might actually get to see some movie before anyone else.  Oh, for free.  Hmm.

These are the movies:

September

Wicker Park.  Another Single White Female type of movie.  Bleh.  It bugs me that the only name mentioned is Josh Hartnett.  We are so over Josh Hartnett, aren't we?  Frankly, I was never that into him to begin with.  But there are two women in the movie with him; their names, please, trailer people?  (one is Diane Kruger, who played Helen in Troy.  The other is Rose Byrne, who was in...also Troy!  And I Capture the Castle.  Yeah, I didn't see it either.)

Cellular.  A woman's life depends on the duration of a cell phone battery.  Yeah, good luck with that.

Mr. 3000.  Bernie Mac, I love ya.  Really and truly, I do.  But I'm not going to see this movie (frankly, the trailer makes me think I've already seen it).  I do look forward to watching you on TV this season, though.  When you get all, "America?" addressing the camera like you do?  I love that.  God bless.

Wimbledon.  Barf.  Jesus, those two are blond.

Motorcycle Diaries.  Yes, I have impure thoughts about Gael Garcia Bernal.  And watching Gael Garcia Bernal as Che Guevara getting all awakened politically?  Hose me down, people.  Seriously, though.  This movie looks magnificent, and I really want to see it.

Vanity Fair.  Love the book.  Very much liked the A&E adaptation from a few years ago.  Not sure how I feel about this one.  Kinda lukewarm on the whole Reese issue, and early reviews have blasted her acting.  Then again, the movie looks lush and decadent, which is appropriate.  It's directed by a woman (Mira Nair).  It's got Jim Broadbent and Jonathan Rhys-Meyers and Julian Fellowes (of Gosford Park) has a writing credit.  I don't have a problem, usually, with people taking liberties with classic books, particularly with 19th-century novels, in which so much of the culture goes unremarked--you have to know what to look for.  But I just read a few reviews that criticized the movie for not having enough satirical bite, "toothless" one of them called it, and that's a big problem.

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow.  I don't get it.

October

A Shark's Tale.  People.  It didn't work with Antz, and it's not gonna work here.  I know you're not trying to be Finding Nemo, but honestly.  After Nemo, animated fish and animated underwater scenarios that aren't meant to look as realistic as possible are not gonna cut it.  (OK, the rasta house DJ jellyfish are kinda funny.)

Taxi.  I don't know where to begin.  Jesus God, no.

Ladder 49.  Eh.  Maybe, before I moved to New York, I would've wanted to see this.  But now that I'm here...I'm OK, thanks.

Friday Night Lights.  Yeah, I'm not so much with the football movies.  I predict this is the movie that my students declare to be the best of the year.

Seed of Chucky.  One atrocious franchise.  One atrocious-looking movie.  But...a pretty good trailer.

November

The Spongebob SquarePants Movie.  Bigger!  Squarier!  Spongier!  New trailer!

The Incredibles.  Now, this.  THIS is the movie I've been waiting for.  Oh, baby.  Give it to me.  Yes!

The Ringer.  Good grief.  So Johnny Knoxville is at confession and he's really upset about something really bad he did, but...it's Johnny Knoxville.  C'mon.  And...yep, there it is.  He's pretending to be mentally challenged so he can fix the Special Olympics.  And that's all I need or care to know.

Kinsey.  Ummmmmmmmm...um.  Um?

National Treasure.  This is the Indiana Jones ripoff starring Nicolas Cage, looking uncharacteristically subdued, which is unfortunate, because a little of his Nicness might make this look more interesting. 

Holiday-ish

A Series of Unfortunate Events.  Dear Jim Carrey: Please to do more movies like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.  That way you'll always balance the crazed lunatic performances you turn out in order to put food on the table (not that I think this is a major concern of yours anymore).  I think it's great that you're playing Count Olaf, but now that I know you're playing a host of other characters...I'm a little turned off.  The kids look good, though.

Blade Trinity.  Because nothing says Christmas like a badass vampire slayer in a tired out franchise.

The Last Shot.  I'm too bored by the trailer to even tell you what this movie's about.  Wow, way to end on a meh note.