March 30, 2005
Hollywood's First Vlogger?
So I'm watching the Once Upon a Time in Mexico DVD from Netflix (which is a great value if you've got more time than money), and it's kind of a mess, but it looks cool and Johnny Depp is fun to watch and there's some Salma Hayek waist/hip ratio wonderment going on. Things blow up. You know, not a bad way to spend 90 minutes. And then all the DVD extras are about how Robert Rodriguez shot it on digital video as cheaply as possible, did everything he could manage to do by himself working from home (editing, scoring, adjusting the text on the damn DVD menu, etc.), and apparently shot the script he wrote with minimal interference from anybody else. He also gives out recipes.
So he's basically a blogger, right? With all the benefits and drawbacks thereof. Passionate, discursive, adamant about maintaining control, using the latest technology to get his point of view out to the world very quickly with a minimum of filters, self-indulgent... I guess his movies make money because he does away with all the extraneous stuff, but it would've been nice if he'd had somebody else there to tell him "No" sometimes. Just like bloggers! Except he actually makes money and people know who he is.
You think? Well, it was something to muse over instead of worrying about the plot, at least.
P.S. Sin City looks to be very pretty and very, very dumb. In other words, a perfect translation of the comic. I think one reviewer said it's not so much adapted as uploaded.
March 29, 2005
If the tumor grows, you must decompose
Sorry. That's not very nice, is it? Okay, so let's have yours.
March 26, 2005
Serious answer about books
I'm just ashamed that I don't read more. And the stuff I do read is junk -- comics, sci-fi, crime, blogs, etc. This week I'm making another run at Cryptonomicon, which makes my third attempt. It's on the "Nice try, dummy" pile, along with Gravity's Rainbow and Infinite Jest.
Of course, reading anything, even the dumbest blog, is better than watching TV news.
March 22, 2005
Thanks, Cathy
You're stuck inside Fahrenheit 451, which book do you want to be?
The one printed on asbestos?
Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character?
No.
The last book you bought is:
On the dining room table.
The last book you read:
Was pretty good.
What are you currently reading?
That question.
Five books you would take to a deserted island.
Why would I go to a deserted island? And if I got stuck on a deserted island by accident, how would I know to take the five books that would need to last me for the rest of my life?
Who are you going to pass this stick to (3 persons) and why?
Him, him, and her. Because apparently I'm expected to.
March 17, 2005
Volksmedia
Jeff Jarvis suggests that term for the realm of blogs and such. Which I kind of like: It looks small from the outside, but it's surprisingly roomy. I also suggested we-dia. Leave me alone, it's the best I could come up with off the top of my head.
P.S. It also sounds like you're trying to describe an incident in which you stuck your tongue in a Weedeater.
March 15, 2005
When You CAIR Enough to Condescend the Very Best
So Jack Bauer takes shelter in a conveniently located gun shop run by a pair of brave, earnest young gentlemen of non-specific Middle Eastern descent. Their dialogue is... well, the writers don't actually put this phrase in their mouths: "We're not all like that crazy Arab lady you yelled at a couple hours ago!" But they might as well have.
Which is all fine, but I'm trying to remember if this has happened in past seasons. Did Bauer run into any kindly, helpful Eastern Europeans who made him realize that Dennis Hopper with a bad beard and worse accent doesn't represent them all?
P.S. I'm starting to think 24 stands for the number of people in Southern California who haven't been tortured on the show.
March 13, 2005
Peaks and Troughs
The last time I was this bored with blogging, Hurricane Kenneth snapped me out of it. It seems unlikely that such a beautiful thing will happen again anytime soon, so I'll just have to walk it off.
March 09, 2005
The thing about being away from the blogs for a bit is that you feel like a visitor from the 17th Century when you try to get caught back up.
What's been going on that I should know about? 500 words or less, please.