Monday, September 1, 2008
Journalist Unlawfully Arrested at RNC
More info here:
http://www.democracynow.org/blog/2008/9/1/amy_goodman_and_two_democracy_now_producers_unlawfully_arrested_at_the_rnc
Monday, August 25, 2008
The Dark Knight
I know that the topic of the day is Biden as Obama's running mate, but I don't know enough about Biden to have formed an opinion yet...and the Troll and I finally got around to seeing Dark Knight this weekend, and I feel like talking about it.
So here goes. ABANDON INNOCENCE, ALL YE WHO ENTER -- HERE BE SPOILERS.
Let me start with the opinion that Dark Knight was absolutely a terrific action flick. The Joker was brilliantly broken. Harvey Dent was, to a lesser extent, nicely complex. The gadgets and movement were very, very cool.The storytelling was exciting. In the end, though, I was disappointed. I've learned about myself that I really thrive on heavily character-driven fiction...and Dakr Knight, overall, just didn't make the cut.
"Really?" you might ask. "But what about what you said about The Joker and Dent?" Well, that's sort of the point. The Joker is awesome, Dent is pretty good. The other characters seemed terribly flat to me.
The Joker was reimagined, whether by writer, director or actor, in what I thought was an absolutely brilliant way. His stilted, strange gait shows him to be in constant, chronic pain. He clearly longs to die, but doesn't have whatever-it-is to kill himself, so he tries desperately to bait Batman into doing it for him. In some nice complexity, that's not his only motivation. He considers himself an agent of chaos, and he's the kind of smart that makes so many smart people outsiders. He soars far above Gotham's criminal base in intelligence and creativity. He has a knack for anticipating the possible options of the good guys, and creating ways of disrupting all of them, so that no choice is safe. His one goal, other than his own death, is to throw as many wrenches into as many works as possible before he goes. He gives different explanations for his scarring with such abandon that I have to wonder if he even remembers anymore what happened, and just how mad he is. This character completely fascinates me; so broken and so brilliant. A rare find; a smart, multi-faceted and interesting villain.
Harvey Dent is projected as the White Knight; not Batman's nemesis, but what Batman could be if he were able to work within the law. He shares the same passion for justice, the same desire to protect, and a similar driven quality, but he does it all within the law. He's noble, but not naive as some noble characters end up being; he's an idealist who has enough practical experience to be able to hit the criminal element hard...and knowing that he probably will never win, hits anyway. He recognizes Batman as something that Gotham needs, and fights to keep that identity hidden so that they can continue cleaning up Gotham...sacrificing himself (much more literally than he planned for) in order to do so. He's a nice, stable, smart guy who is doing a tough job to his best ability, and enjoying some success at it - and he is COMPLETELY unprepared for The Joker. I can't make a huge amount of comment on his transformation into Two Face, because frankly, the visuals distracted me too much for me to really pay attention to the characterization. Perhaps when it comes out on dvd I'll be able to tell more.
There is some really nice symbology going on with the White Knight/Dark Knight combo and foreshadowing the creation of Two Face.
I would have liked to see more depth in the other big players in the story, specifically in Batman, Rachel and Gordon, and in fact I think the movie suffered the lack of it. I would have liked to have seen more intense interaction within the love triangle of Rachel, Bruce and Harvey. Some intense emotional interaction between Bruce and Harvey. I mean, c'mon...these two guys are in love with the same woman, and they have incredible levels of respect and envy for each other. I want to SEE how much Bruce longs to be like Dent, able to be the hero in public, able to stay within the law and still succeed, able to be with the woman he loves without the fears that plague him. I want to see Bruce start to feel like a part of something positive with Rachel, Dent and Gordon, and I want to see that glimmer of hope ripped away by the Joker.I want to see that part of the Joker's power over Batman is that the Joker embraces the same darkness that Bruce fears and hates in himself. I want to see Rachel torn between the two sides of the same archetype, and to know how intensely she feels about both of them. I want to feel Batman's pain when it becomes clear that just as Dent sacrifices his career to save what Batman does for Gotham, Batman sacrifices his hopes of ever being an unequivical good guy to save what Dent did for Gotham.
Seriously, this movie should have been so wrenching and dark that I should have been sobbing in my popcorn at the tragedy of it all.
Instead I got a cookie-cutter Rachel, who was all but nonexistent in terms of character...not exactly unfamiliar treatment of a woman in a comic book universe, but disappointing nonetheless. Gordon wasn't any better, despite the possibilities for character growth here. Batman seemed to just be going through the same old motions, not adding layers of darkness to his character as he should have done in this story. The Joker's arrival, Batman's inability to outhink or even keep up with him, and the Dent/Rachel tragedy he set up should have completely wrecked him, but Bruce ended the movie not seeming any more lonely or broken than he started out.
This is completely worth seeing, and I even recommend seeing it on the big screen for the fabulous action and for the ability to focus on the subtleties of the Joker, but this movie, for me, lacked an emotional edge that I expected and hoped for in it.
So here goes. ABANDON INNOCENCE, ALL YE WHO ENTER -- HERE BE SPOILERS.
Let me start with the opinion that Dark Knight was absolutely a terrific action flick. The Joker was brilliantly broken. Harvey Dent was, to a lesser extent, nicely complex. The gadgets and movement were very, very cool.The storytelling was exciting. In the end, though, I was disappointed. I've learned about myself that I really thrive on heavily character-driven fiction...and Dakr Knight, overall, just didn't make the cut.
"Really?" you might ask. "But what about what you said about The Joker and Dent?" Well, that's sort of the point. The Joker is awesome, Dent is pretty good. The other characters seemed terribly flat to me.
The Joker was reimagined, whether by writer, director or actor, in what I thought was an absolutely brilliant way. His stilted, strange gait shows him to be in constant, chronic pain. He clearly longs to die, but doesn't have whatever-it-is to kill himself, so he tries desperately to bait Batman into doing it for him. In some nice complexity, that's not his only motivation. He considers himself an agent of chaos, and he's the kind of smart that makes so many smart people outsiders. He soars far above Gotham's criminal base in intelligence and creativity. He has a knack for anticipating the possible options of the good guys, and creating ways of disrupting all of them, so that no choice is safe. His one goal, other than his own death, is to throw as many wrenches into as many works as possible before he goes. He gives different explanations for his scarring with such abandon that I have to wonder if he even remembers anymore what happened, and just how mad he is. This character completely fascinates me; so broken and so brilliant. A rare find; a smart, multi-faceted and interesting villain.
Harvey Dent is projected as the White Knight; not Batman's nemesis, but what Batman could be if he were able to work within the law. He shares the same passion for justice, the same desire to protect, and a similar driven quality, but he does it all within the law. He's noble, but not naive as some noble characters end up being; he's an idealist who has enough practical experience to be able to hit the criminal element hard...and knowing that he probably will never win, hits anyway. He recognizes Batman as something that Gotham needs, and fights to keep that identity hidden so that they can continue cleaning up Gotham...sacrificing himself (much more literally than he planned for) in order to do so. He's a nice, stable, smart guy who is doing a tough job to his best ability, and enjoying some success at it - and he is COMPLETELY unprepared for The Joker. I can't make a huge amount of comment on his transformation into Two Face, because frankly, the visuals distracted me too much for me to really pay attention to the characterization. Perhaps when it comes out on dvd I'll be able to tell more.
There is some really nice symbology going on with the White Knight/Dark Knight combo and foreshadowing the creation of Two Face.
I would have liked to see more depth in the other big players in the story, specifically in Batman, Rachel and Gordon, and in fact I think the movie suffered the lack of it. I would have liked to have seen more intense interaction within the love triangle of Rachel, Bruce and Harvey. Some intense emotional interaction between Bruce and Harvey. I mean, c'mon...these two guys are in love with the same woman, and they have incredible levels of respect and envy for each other. I want to SEE how much Bruce longs to be like Dent, able to be the hero in public, able to stay within the law and still succeed, able to be with the woman he loves without the fears that plague him. I want to see Bruce start to feel like a part of something positive with Rachel, Dent and Gordon, and I want to see that glimmer of hope ripped away by the Joker.I want to see that part of the Joker's power over Batman is that the Joker embraces the same darkness that Bruce fears and hates in himself. I want to see Rachel torn between the two sides of the same archetype, and to know how intensely she feels about both of them. I want to feel Batman's pain when it becomes clear that just as Dent sacrifices his career to save what Batman does for Gotham, Batman sacrifices his hopes of ever being an unequivical good guy to save what Dent did for Gotham.
Seriously, this movie should have been so wrenching and dark that I should have been sobbing in my popcorn at the tragedy of it all.
Instead I got a cookie-cutter Rachel, who was all but nonexistent in terms of character...not exactly unfamiliar treatment of a woman in a comic book universe, but disappointing nonetheless. Gordon wasn't any better, despite the possibilities for character growth here. Batman seemed to just be going through the same old motions, not adding layers of darkness to his character as he should have done in this story. The Joker's arrival, Batman's inability to outhink or even keep up with him, and the Dent/Rachel tragedy he set up should have completely wrecked him, but Bruce ended the movie not seeming any more lonely or broken than he started out.
This is completely worth seeing, and I even recommend seeing it on the big screen for the fabulous action and for the ability to focus on the subtleties of the Joker, but this movie, for me, lacked an emotional edge that I expected and hoped for in it.
Friday, August 15, 2008
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Remake the Rocky Horror Picture Show? Sacrilege!
Actually, it could probably be done, and probably be done well. But not by MTV.
Friday, August 8, 2008
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Summer TV
Summer has become, as I become older, a time primarily of endurance. My migraines are most often triggered by barometric extremity, and since fever and overheating are part of my typical migraine symptoms, heat and humidity can exacerbate the problem. So, I spend a lot of time in the summer inside, in the air conditioning, and because I get a lot of migraines anyway (especially when there are hurricanes in the gulf), often I spend the time watching TV and trying to move as little as possible.
So I watch a lot of TV. This summer, particularly, I've spent a lot of time catching up on TV that's been recommended to me, that I didn't get to when it first started. And I've finally gotten around to writing up some quick notes about it, so here goes:
Eureka - I love this series. It's a far cry from the supernatural drama I usually go for, and that's one of the things I like about it. It's cheery and interesting. All of the characters are some form of genius or another, and they all live in a town together - which makes them all act (in many ways) like average Joes. The one actual "normal guy", the sherriff, is tasked with finding out what whacko things the townsfolk have come up with this week. It's light, it's entertaining and it doesn't leave me emotionally drained. I am eagerly awaiting the new season. I'm watching reruns this very moment, in fact.
Wonderfalls - I remember that when this came out, I was still reeling from too many cancellations, and though I knew that Tim Minear was at work on it, I couldn't bear to watch it, get hooked and have it cancelled. Turns out my hunch was right, because it was cancelled after a mere 13 eps. Sad. It was a delightful, enjoyable show with some good character complexity happening. It's a real shame it got shut out.
Burn Notice - Entertaining and a bit snarky. Spy gets shut out of the world of spydom, and winds up in Miami (where his family lives). He tries desperately to find out why he got "burned", hilarity ensues. Whacky, trigger-happy exGF and ex FBI old buddy (played delightfully by Bruce Campbell) and the aforementioned family round out the mix, and make for some fun entanglements.
Torchwood - A spinoff of the new Doctor Who, geared for a moreadult sex-oriented audience. Good, good stuff. Did I mention that I normally go for supernatural drama? Well, this qualifies, and it's a good one. Lots of lovely relationship angst, mystery, a good amount of funny, and mulit-inclusive sexuality. Completely cracktastic and sexy, it's a fandom wet dream come true. Seriously.
Doctor Who - After getting hooked on Torchwood, I had to check out the new Who. Now, keep in mind that the last time I watched Doctor Who, I was in my early teens. I don't remember anything about any of the story lines (don't even remember Daleks), but I do remember that I watched it mostly because it introduced me to ideas, history and vocabulary that I wasn't getting growing up in a small town in the heartland. The new Who is carrying on in that tradition - at least the history stuff. I'm a bit of a history fiend, but I'm learning some amazing and delightful historical stuff, like the Balloon Barrage, and the idea that vinegar was integral to Hannibal's crossing of the Alps. I think I may end up still not remembering in a few years the story lines, but I'm enjoying watching them. We're only just into the first series, so it may be that the stories become more compelling with time.
Saving Grace - I started watching this incredibly compelling supernatural drama when it re-ran during the winter (it's a summer series). It's the story of an Oklahoma City cop, Grace (played amazingly by Holly Hunter). Grace is a hard-drinking, aggressively sexual woman who, during a night of drinking and debauchery, runs into and kills a man. That's not really a spoiler, since the death is merely the catalyst for the rest of the story. Grace, an angrily lapsed Catholic, drunkenly prays to God for help with a life that's become completely out of her control. Enter Earl, the Last Chance Angel. Earl's job is to bring Grace back into God's fold. Hilarity, intense emotional issues and mystery ensues. It's really, really good - it doesn't offer a lot of pat answers to the questions it raises about religion, morality and life. I was really glad to see that it got a second season, and I'm really enjoying it.
Cities of the Underworld - I found this via the Troll's dad, who had watched an episode featuring forgotten NYC subway tunnels and was telling us about it. It's a fascinating look at the underground, often-forgotten areas around the world. Some nifty history and fun watching a crazy guy cram himself into tiny, underground spaces with great glee. Worthwhile non-fiction.
How to Look Good Naked - This show makes me cry every single episode. It's an incredible testament to how completely terrible American women are taught to feel about their bodies, and the damage that internalizing all that nastiness does. Good stuff, I'm glad it's back.
Joan of Arcadia - Sci Fi has just started re-running this. Joan is the daughter of the new police chief of Arcadia. Soon after they move there, God starts talking to Joan, taking the form of random people she meets, and telling her to do odd things. She wonders if she's going insane, of course. I've seen two episodes, and I'm quite enjoying it.
I've got Lost, Pushing Daisies, Weeds, Dexter and Blood Ties still to watch. Which is good, since we're just entering the height of hurricane season.
So I watch a lot of TV. This summer, particularly, I've spent a lot of time catching up on TV that's been recommended to me, that I didn't get to when it first started. And I've finally gotten around to writing up some quick notes about it, so here goes:
Eureka - I love this series. It's a far cry from the supernatural drama I usually go for, and that's one of the things I like about it. It's cheery and interesting. All of the characters are some form of genius or another, and they all live in a town together - which makes them all act (in many ways) like average Joes. The one actual "normal guy", the sherriff, is tasked with finding out what whacko things the townsfolk have come up with this week. It's light, it's entertaining and it doesn't leave me emotionally drained. I am eagerly awaiting the new season. I'm watching reruns this very moment, in fact.
Wonderfalls - I remember that when this came out, I was still reeling from too many cancellations, and though I knew that Tim Minear was at work on it, I couldn't bear to watch it, get hooked and have it cancelled. Turns out my hunch was right, because it was cancelled after a mere 13 eps. Sad. It was a delightful, enjoyable show with some good character complexity happening. It's a real shame it got shut out.
Burn Notice - Entertaining and a bit snarky. Spy gets shut out of the world of spydom, and winds up in Miami (where his family lives). He tries desperately to find out why he got "burned", hilarity ensues. Whacky, trigger-happy exGF and ex FBI old buddy (played delightfully by Bruce Campbell) and the aforementioned family round out the mix, and make for some fun entanglements.
Torchwood - A spinoff of the new Doctor Who, geared for a more
Doctor Who - After getting hooked on Torchwood, I had to check out the new Who. Now, keep in mind that the last time I watched Doctor Who, I was in my early teens. I don't remember anything about any of the story lines (don't even remember Daleks), but I do remember that I watched it mostly because it introduced me to ideas, history and vocabulary that I wasn't getting growing up in a small town in the heartland. The new Who is carrying on in that tradition - at least the history stuff. I'm a bit of a history fiend, but I'm learning some amazing and delightful historical stuff, like the Balloon Barrage, and the idea that vinegar was integral to Hannibal's crossing of the Alps. I think I may end up still not remembering in a few years the story lines, but I'm enjoying watching them. We're only just into the first series, so it may be that the stories become more compelling with time.
Saving Grace - I started watching this incredibly compelling supernatural drama when it re-ran during the winter (it's a summer series). It's the story of an Oklahoma City cop, Grace (played amazingly by Holly Hunter). Grace is a hard-drinking, aggressively sexual woman who, during a night of drinking and debauchery, runs into and kills a man. That's not really a spoiler, since the death is merely the catalyst for the rest of the story. Grace, an angrily lapsed Catholic, drunkenly prays to God for help with a life that's become completely out of her control. Enter Earl, the Last Chance Angel. Earl's job is to bring Grace back into God's fold. Hilarity, intense emotional issues and mystery ensues. It's really, really good - it doesn't offer a lot of pat answers to the questions it raises about religion, morality and life. I was really glad to see that it got a second season, and I'm really enjoying it.
Cities of the Underworld - I found this via the Troll's dad, who had watched an episode featuring forgotten NYC subway tunnels and was telling us about it. It's a fascinating look at the underground, often-forgotten areas around the world. Some nifty history and fun watching a crazy guy cram himself into tiny, underground spaces with great glee. Worthwhile non-fiction.
How to Look Good Naked - This show makes me cry every single episode. It's an incredible testament to how completely terrible American women are taught to feel about their bodies, and the damage that internalizing all that nastiness does. Good stuff, I'm glad it's back.
Joan of Arcadia - Sci Fi has just started re-running this. Joan is the daughter of the new police chief of Arcadia. Soon after they move there, God starts talking to Joan, taking the form of random people she meets, and telling her to do odd things. She wonders if she's going insane, of course. I've seen two episodes, and I'm quite enjoying it.
I've got Lost, Pushing Daisies, Weeds, Dexter and Blood Ties still to watch. Which is good, since we're just entering the height of hurricane season.
Quizzy
My Liberal Identity:
You are a Social Justice Crusader, also known as a rights activist. You believe in equality, fairness, and preventing neo-Confederate conservative troglodytes from rolling back fifty years of civil rights gains.
Take the quiz at www.FightConservatives.com
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