This will be a day long remembered...

Did I mention that I finally let the kids watch Star Wars?


We recently let the kids watch Star Wars (1977) for the first time. They were both aware of some of the ships and characters from toys and clothing and a general awareness of Pop Culture, but they hadn't actually seen the movie.

My hope had always been that both kids would be ready to watch it at about the same time and that's pretty much how it worked out. They both liked it, of course, and are anxious to see the other films in the series. We're letting them watch the original a few more times before we launch into any others.

Even though it is unlikely that I saw the original film in theaters (as a three-year-old), I keep telling them how I had to wait three years between films. Besides, Empire is so much darker than the first film. We'll see how it goes.






A friend sent me this on Facebook when I mentioned it there:




In other news...



Pee Wee Basketball 2011

Harrison had Pee Wee basketball on Saturdays in February again this year. He did much better this year. I didn't have to physically control his unwilling body this time, so that's a step in the right direction.

The Force Was With Them

...for a few seconds, at least.

If I had seven grand to burn (so to speak), I'd probably order a brand new D3 and some decent glass to go with it (and then go crazy waiting 4-6 months for it all to arrive).

These guys chose a slightly different path. They decided to build a life-size X-wing, launch it and hope for the best.

Now, why didn't I think of that?

Because I'm not a GENIUS like these guys!


Is that a beautiful sight, or what?

Here's the video

Here's the story

Here's 'what REALLY happened'

Then The Emperor Has Already Won...

Did I mention that I was skeptical about the forthcoming DVD release of Star Wars? Well, pessimists of the world, rejoice! George Lucas is sticking it to his fans again!

According to The Digital Bits and a linked article from Home Media Retailing, the September DVD release will, in fact, feature the original unaltered films, but they will be transfers of the non-anamorphic (click here if you don't know what that means, but want to) laserdisc releases from the early 90s. This probably means little to those of us who are still using standard definition, analog televisions, but for those with HD sets or plans to upgrade, this means that the unaltered films on these DVDs will have vastly inferior video quality than current standards. The truth is that video transfers created nearly 15 years ago, are ancient. The DVD format hadn't even gotten off the ground when these transfers were created and the technology used to create video transfers from film sources has advanced significantly in the meantime. For a film that in many ways set a new standard for the use of technology, it is sad to see the same film so far behind what is possible.

Here's a quote from the response some fans have been getting to their letters and e-mails:

So many fans have requested the original movies, we wanted to find a way to bring them to you. But since these movies do not represent George's artistic vision, we could not put the extraordinary time and resources into this project as we did with the Special Editions. The 1993 Laserdisc masters represented the best source for providing the original versions as DVD bonus material. Although these are non-anamorphic versions, they do preserve the original widescreen composition of the movies.

We want you to be aware that we have no plans -- now or in the future -- to restore the earlier versions.

That's the nail in the coffin, folks. We will never see the original, unaltered trilogy with technology beyond 1993. Sad news, indeed, on the 29th anniversary of the premier of Star Wars in theaters.

Films Recently Watched:

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) dir. by Peter Jackson
After finding the extended motion picture soundtrack at the library and enjoying it, I wanted to give this a viewing. And once you pop . . . you can't stop!
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) dir. by Peter Jackson
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) dir. by Peter Jackson

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) dir. by Stanley Kubrick
I'd seen bits and pieces but never the entire film. An amazing piece of science fiction. Not full of action, but definitely thought-provoking. For those who have seen the film, here is one interesting explanation of the film in Shockwave Flash format.

Howl's Moving Castle (2004) dir. by Hayao Miyazaki
Full of imagination and wonders. Miyazaki's attention to detail shines again here, as it did in 'Spirited Away.' Miyazaki is a filmmaker who takes full advantage of the animated medium. He would likely be crippled by the confines of live-action. It's kind of like being in a dream -- I don't know what it all means, but -- you just go with it. The Region 1 DVD has an English dub (which I only sampled) featuring the voice talent of Christian Bale, Lauren Bacall, Billy Crystal, and Jean Simmons. The English dialogue was directed by Pixar's Pete Doctor, who directed Monsters, Inc. Those folks at Pixar are all huge Miyazaki fans, led by John Lasseter, the chief creative executive who may just be the biggest Miyazaki fan in the world.

Bruce Almighty (2003) dir. by Tom Shadyac
Somewhere deep in msubconsciousus, I must have been needing a silly comedy, because this had me laughing out loud. I still have to compose myself when I think about the scene where Jim Carrey's titular character uses his powers to "possess" Steve Carell's character, Evan Baxter, during the evening news. Of course, I think Steve Carell would be funny reading the phonebook, so your mileage may vary. I'll be looking for the follow-up to this, Evan Almighty, scheduled for release in 2007.

Serenity (2005) dir. by Joss Whedon
I went into this knowing nothing about the characters nor story of the cult television series, Firefly on which this is based. I think that fans of the TV show would appreciate this more. It was OK, and I do like the way Whedon instills moments of comedy into otherwise tense dialogue. I won't be running out to buy Firefly on DVD, though.

Brokeback Mountain (2005) dir. by Ang Lee
This wasn't all I hoped it would be. I love the other Ang Lee films I've seen (Sense and Sensibility / Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon / Hulk), and I wanted to like this one, but it just didn't grab me. There were moments during the film that were reminiscent of Lee's other excellent camerawork, lighting and ingenuity, but much of the film just felt flat to me. I did like the use of music.

Oh, and since we're talking about Star Wars anyway -- for those that found Anakin's "turn" in Revenge of the Sith to be sudden and unbelievable, just wait until you see this!! I knew it was coming and I still didn't believe it!

Original Unaltered Trilogy Coming to DVD!!!

I just had to pick myself up off the floor. I'm stunned.

This is not a joke. Here's the link from the official site.

I'm not sure how to react:

I'm thrilled.
I'm angry.
I'm happy.
I'm anxious.
I'm skeptical.



There is already speculation and confusion about exactly what we'll get in this set. There are so many variations of these movies, nobody knows yet what to expect. Will we get the original 1977 crawl without "Episode IV?" Will we get the original effects blunders that have been cleaned up through the years? Will we get 2.0 channel audio, or something else? Will Luke scream like a little girl when he chooses to jump into the chasm at Bespin?

For now, I will wait and see. The set doesn't release until September 12, 2006, so I'm sure much more information (and mis-information) will surface between now and then

Kite-Flying Memories

Thanks to a comment from Christy's Aunt Marilyn, I remembered another Fite-Klying story that I will share with you now:

Besides a ghastly teapot from Gloria Gaither, the most unusual gifts that Christy and I received for our wedding were two Star Wars kites. They were from two buddies from college, Pat Hannon and Ryan Prinkey. The odd thing about it was that they did not conspire in this. Neither knew what the other had planned. Heck, Prinkey was barely even in the country at the time. He was doing an internship in Washington D.C. that semester, but gave strict instructions to his mother about what must be included in our wedding present.

One very windy, very gusty day shortly after our wedding, I said to Christy, "We should totally go fly one of those Star Wars kites!" but Christy was doubtful. "Don't you think it's too windy to fly a kite" she questioned. "Too Windy?" I scoffed, "How could it possibly be too windy to fly a kite?" So out we went. We lived just a few blocks away from the Anderson University campus and we figured the practice soccer fields would provide plenty of room away from power lines to fly the kite. It wasn't particularly cold that day, but with the wind blowing so hard, it felt a lot colder than it was, especially after we walked to campus.

Though I still believed that it couldn't be too windy to fly a kite, I was nearly convinced that it could be too windy to assemble a kite. But we persevered and finally got the kite ready to launch. We tried a few times with Christy holding the kite and me holding the string which didn't seem to be working, so we switched so that Christy was holding the string and I was downwind holding the kite. It may have been the first time that I tried to launch, but it was certainly the last. I was holding the kite in front of my chest and let it go. The kite found the wind, shot straight up, hit me square in the chin. As I mentioned, it felt much colder than it was due to the wind. You know how those parts that are exposed to the cold really hurt when struck? Well getting hit in the chin by a speeding kite was enough to knock me to the ground just before the wind shredded the kite.

Moral of the story: It can be too windy to fly a kite (a.k.a. Listen to your wife)


Films Recently Watched:

Veronica Guerin (2003) dir. by Joel Schumacher

IMPS - The Relentless: Chapter 1

I got a surprise in the mail Saturday.

As I mentioned before, one of Christy's relatives is involved with the guys that made the Star Wars fan film, Troops. They're making what will eventually be a feature-length film, I.M.P.S. The Relentless, but they're releasing it in small pieces (these guys all have full-time jobs, besides devoting lots of their "spare" time to this project).

They released the trailer back in March and released the first chapter back in May.

So why am I waiting to tell you about it until now? Good question.

I tried several times to download it, but couldn't.

I could download it at work, but couldn't play it there. I downloaded and installed the correct DivX player at home (which was the problem at work), but had some trouble downloading the actual film over my dial-up connection there (it's a 200MB+ file).

All that to say, Nathan was kind enough to mail me a DVD copy of the first chapter and trailer!



So now that I've seen it, I'm happy to report to you that it is really good! This is not your average (or even above-average) fan film.

This has a really high production value throughout, and these aren't just a bunch of tight shots on actors either, they've created a world for these ships and characters and they allow the viewer to see it! There is a lot of detail here that could have easily been left out. The ships are believable inside and out and these aren't just all the same ships that we've seen in the Star Wars films. They have created new ideas and expanded on what we've seen before. I was especially fond of the TIE docking stations and the landing gear on the Corellian freighter. Very nice.

Believable sound effects that, again, expand on the Star Wars universe, but still fit the part. I even heard a "Wilhelm" scream in there! Very nice work, fellas!

More on the plus side, there was original music composed for this production. More on that HERE. The CG elements they use blend in nicely with the real sets and actors. Editing, mixing, all quite good.

With a narrator speaking over the first several scenes, I started to worry that the entire thing would be like that, but once you get to the dialogue, there are several genuinely funny moments, some spoken, some not.

I'm anxious to see in what direction this film is going to go next, though I'm a little worried that they're actually going to make me care about some of these troops that were always so easy to hate from Lucas' films.

Other that that, the only downside that I can think of is that I am probably now on every government terrorist watch list between here and California! Besides getting a package in the mail that says "Special Imperial Agent," now, with all this terrorist nonsense happening over in London accompanied by headlines like MURDER AT STOCKWELL, BAD DAY AT STOCKWELL STATION, and STOCKWELL RAIDS, well, I'm pretty sure that I'm being monitored by the F.B.I., C.I.A., etc.

May the Force be with me -- and also with you!

Anybody want a Star Wars bootleg??

Here at Bootleg Central, we take seriously our responsibility to bring you the best of what bootleg films have to offer!

Now available,
Star war: The backstroke of the west

Cee teh adventureres of Ratio Tile and Smelly Boy as they cut the big up rough now and battle thes troopseses of the big. Be prepored to rethin all you thot was true when you noed the real reezons why Smelly Boy was made by the Presbyterian Church! Can Smelly Boy make his dreamses come true and garantee the safety of his love, his cuckoldry, or is he just a Lier with strong and big wish powers? Find out for yourself by calling 1-800-BOOTLEG and ordering Star war: The backstroke of the west!!!

NOTE: the linked page above does contain a few vulgar words in the mis-translated subtitles. You've beened warned and have no excuse to later say, "Do not want."

Coming Soon:
Vietnamese and my confectionary storage facility
Counter-Attacking of the geologic change's
Mr. Smith and his cuckoldry
Good elephant's disheveled hair
The strongs big of frightening territories
and the ever-popular,
All your base are belong to us / Somebody set up us the bomb (2-pack)

All right...enough with the Star Wars nonsense...

OK, so it's still Star Wars related, but this isn't nonsense, well, it might be a bit silly -- OK, so what if it is a bunch of Star Wars nonsense, it's my blog, so shut up!!

Click the picture above and you can challenge Darth Vader to a battle of wits, Twenty Questions. He'll always take a firm guess on #20 if he hasn't already beaten you by then. He'll continue to guess up to around 30, but be creative - he can be beat!

Be aware that it is little more than a Burger King promotion, so if that creepy Burger King guy shows up, you'll know why.

Films Recently Watched:

Father of the Bride (1991) dir. by Charles Shyer

Father of the Bride (1950) dir. by Vincente Minnelli
Having seen the 1991 film several times and again, recently, this was my first time seeing the original 1950 Father of the Bride. After the Cheaper by the Dozen fiasco, I was surprised to see that the older Father of the Bride was apparently used as a model for the later, 1991 version. This is one case where, in my opinion, both films are well-made and quite good.

Strangers on a Train (1951) dir. by Alfred Hitchcock
Pretty classic Hitchcock. Robert Walker's facial expressions and stares in this film were spooky! Reminiscent of Anthony Hopkins' Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs.

Napoleon Dynamite (2004) dir. by Jared Hess
Much to Christy's chagrin, I was compelled to watch this again because I picked it up used from Blockbuster and wanted to check for defects before the guarantee expired. I believe that Christy would be more than happy to point out the "defects" in this film and return it to Blockbuster for me, but it looked fine to me!

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) dir. by Michael Gondry
Odd for a "romantic comedy," but pretty cool conceptually as science-fiction.

Revenge Of The Sith

Films Very Recently Watched:

Star Wars: Epidode III -- Revenge of the Sith (2005) dir. by George Lucas

Here are a few initial thoughts in the form of a modest review. I may add to this post as other thoughts occur to me or possibly if I get the chance to see the movie again.

With Revenge of the Sith, Creator/Writer/Director, George Lucas brings to a conclusion the Star Wars prequels and, in doing so, brings an end to the Star Wars saga. Lucas has managed to do all of this in fine fashion.

Sith finally tells the story of Anakin Skywalker’s turn from good to evil and the creation of the Galactic Empire against which the now famous characters Luke, Leia, Lando, etc. rebel in Episodes 4, 5, & 6. It is the film that we all wanted 1 & 2 to be. Few really wanted to see Anakin as a ten-year-old kid who exclaimed, “Yippee” far more than is becoming of any future Dark Lord of the universe. Few really wanted to see twenty-something Anakin whining about his teacher’s methods to his new girlfriend, Padmé. But, alas, Lucas decided to make a trilogy of the back story films to mirror the original trilogy, so that’s what we got. Far be it for me to complain about the number of Star Wars films, though, as I have enjoyed every minute. Ultimately, perhaps the best way to say it is that Episodes 1 & 2 are there mainly to set an extravagant stage on which Episode 3 can revel. Regardless, Sith is easily the best of the preqels and it was worth the wait.

Performances
Ewan McGregor delivers the best performance by far in this film, in my opinion. Even more so than in the previous two prequels, Ewan is Obi-Wan Kenobi. Any faults here would have to fall on the writing and not the delivered performance. McGregor supplies believability to a range of emotions including humor like a veteran. Well done, Sir Ewan.

We got to see a glimpse of the intensity of which Hayden Christensen is capable in Attack of the Clones. In Sith, Christensen is given the opportunity time after time to display that intensity. For a director whose primary guidance to his actors is the now infamous, “Faster – More Intense,” Hayden must have been an absolute dream to work with as far as Lucas was concerned.

Surprisingly, CG Yoda gives one of the most human performances in the film. From full motion shots to extreme close-ups, Yoda looks amazing on screen and I’ve got to give props to the animators at ILM who created his performance for this film. Frank Oz again provides the voice of Yoda. He does it unlike anybody else, but Yoda does a fair amount of speaking in this film and his uncanny speech style begins to stick out after a while. “Talk like this, I must. Began it did in Empire. No other way is there.” Other than that, fantastic.

I was expecting to be amazed by the performance of Ian McDiarmid as Palpatine. As it ended up, I was only amazed by the fact that I wasn’t amazed at all. I found much of his performance was over-the-top, to say the least.

This could be another case where the faults lie with the writing and/or directing, but I believe that there are deeper issues with Natalie Portman’s performance as Padmé in Sith. Overall, Portman just seemed very one-dimensional here. Seems with all she’s going through, there would be a much wider range of emotions, especially when you consider the fact that she’s pregnant through the entire film! Whether it’s the writing/directing or the performance, itself, there is much more that could have been done with Padmé that would have benefited the film.

Rating
In my opinion, there are probably only two or three scenes that put the rating of this film past the PG rating that all the other films in the saga have received. As an adult, I am glad that Lucas chose to show these scenes exactly the way he wanted to, but I must admit that had he toned these scenes down a notch or two, or possibly removed them entirely, relying on implied rather than overt violence and gore, the film as a whole would not have suffered.
Parents of young children, go see this one yourselves before allowing your kids to go. The 13 year mark denoted in the PG-13 rating is probably about the right dividing line for this film, though every child is different, of course. You know you want to see it more than once anyway, so this can be your excuse! See it yourself and use your best judgment for each of your children.

For the record, tears were not shed from these eyes during my first viewing of this film. To Lucas’ credit, though, there were a couple of times when I got caught up in the emotion of the story and had to consciously battle against welling up.

Conclusion
For what will probably be the last Star Wars film ever, I felt that I owed it to myself to keep tradition and attend the Midnight showing. As I explained previously, this is not just ‘going to the movies,’ the Midnight show is an event, and I am glad that I went.

Finally, in order of release, here are my rankings of each of the films that make up the Star Wars saga:

Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope 9/10
Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back 10/10
Star Wars: Episode VI – The Return of the Jedi 8/10
Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace 8/10
Star Wars: Episode II – The Attack of the Clones 7/10
Star Wars: Episode III – The Revenge of the Sith 8/10

Tonight! Tonight! It's coming Tonight! Tonight! Tonight! Tonight! Hot Damn, Tonight!

Star Wars Countdown

[EDIT (05/20/2005): removed countdown timer since the event has passed]

Check my sidebar ----->
I've added a countdown timer for Episode III!

My friend, Doug, got me a ticket for a midnight show so that we can say that we were among the first to see the last 'Star Wars' film. We, along with a bunch of other people from Doug's church, did the same thing for Episodes I & II. Should be fun! Fanboys (and girls, believe it or not) dressed up as their favorite characters, cheering, clapping, booing, hissing, it's quite the experience!

Of course, I'll have thoughts (and hopefully pictures) to post here after seeing the film in 19 days, 11 hours, 2 minutes, and 45 seconds, make that 40 seconds, 39, 38, 37, well... just watch the countdown timer.

Thanks to a guy I don't know, but fellow Star Wars fan, Kunj for the code template I used for the countdown timer. He offered it freely here. Check out his site (linked above) which offers mainly science/tech news stories and links.

Films Recently Watched:

Léon (1994) dir. by Luc Besson
I don't know why, but I had an immediate connection with this film. It can't be the subject matter. The story is about a professional hitman (played by Jean Reno) or "cleaner" who takes a young girl (played by Natalie Portman) under his wing and teaches her his craft so she can exact revenge on the men who killed her parents. Don't have any experience there.

Portman's performance in this film (her first) is stunning. She not only nails her own scenes, but also manages believable on-screen chemistry opposite the male lead, Reno. That's not just the Star Wars fanboy in me rooting for Queen Amadila, either! At least, I don't think so.

Anyway, if you haven't seen this, I recommend it. There is also a slightly extended cut of the film available which I have not yet seen, but I've heard that it only improves on the shorter version. In the U.S., the film was released with the title, The Professional. The extended cut is titled, "Leon: The Professional."

The Last Samurai (2003) dir. by Edward Zwick
I tried to like this film, but just couldn't. Apart from perhaps a few historical inaccuracies etc., there's nothing wrong with the film. I just didn't have the immediate 'connection' with this one like I had with The Professional (mentioned above). Tom Cruise gives an adequate performance, but is in the shadow of Ken Watanabe every time they're on screen together.

Karate Kid (1984) dir. by John G. Avildsen
It was a thrill to watch this one again. For me, it hasn't lost anything in its 20+ years. Watching this when I was 10-12, I remember developing early notions about romance, strength, honor, etc. from this film. Maybe that's what's wrong with me?

Episode III Soundtrack

I'm currently listening to the John Williams score to Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge Of The Sith. Yeah, that's right, the one that doesn't release until May 3rd. The one that my friend here in the Copyright department illegally downloaded and saved to our network so that we could listen to it here at work, in the copyright department of a Gospel Music Company. :P

First of all, Wow. It's really good. Williams has done it again.

Secondly, don't worry, I'm going to buy it when it comes out. Furthermore, you should, too. The music is great, BUT WAIT - THERE'S MORE!! A second disc will be included that will have 70 minutes of Star Wars music videos featuring music, dialogue, and images from all six films in the saga. This DVD, featuring 5.1 surround audio would be worth the purchase price alone, but is included in every copy of the Episode III soundtrack CD.
[Read More - here]

Films Recently Watched:

Artificial Intelligence: AI (2000) dir. by Stephen Spielberg
A heartbreaking modernization of the classic Pinocchio. A mecha (robot) is made to be capable of love, but wants to complete his transformation by becoming "a real boy."

Matchstick Men (2003) dir. by Ridley Scott
A really fun con-artist film. This is what you get when Ridley Scott (Gladiator, Black Hawk Down, Blade Runner, Alien) makes a film about an elaborate con. Starring a phobic/OCD Nick Cage and a wiley Sam Rockwell. Also in this film is (then) 24-year-old Alison Lohman who does a most-convincing job of playing a character 10 years younger than she really was. She really nails the mannerisms of a 14-year-old.

Citizen Kane (1941) dir. by Orson Welles
I finally watched "the best film ever made." The best film ever made it may be, but you won't be seeing it on any list of "favorite" films from me anytime soon. I hope to watch it again before it's due back at the library and listen to the Roger Ebert commentary. I've heard that the commentary is well done and helps one to appreciate this film.

Love Actually (2003) dir. by Richard Curtis
Too many stories to tell. I think they could have picked two or three of the eight (seriously) couples' and told these stories well in 30-minutes less time and everybody would have been happier (except for the actors who's characters got cut, I suppose).

De-Lovely (2004) dir. by Irwin Winkler
After Christy and I watched an older Cole Porter biopic, Night and Day, recently, we were interested in seeing this recent Cole Porter film. This film seems to have "agenda" written all over it:

• Agenda #1: Create an opportunity to overtly deal with the issue of Porter's homosexuality, something that, not surprisingly, wasn't even mentioned in the 1946 version.
• Agenda #2: Create an opportunity to feature performances by current jazz and pop stars (Diana Krall, Natalie Cole, Alanis Morissette, Elvis Costello, etc.)
• Agenda #3: Create an opportunity for Kevin Kline to win his coveted Oscar for best actor in a leading role (Kline won for best supporting actor in 1989 for A Fish Called Wanda).

I.M.P.S.

As a consumer of Star Wars Fan Films (like Pink 5, mentioned briefly here back in September), I'm sure that you've seen one of the best ones ever done, Troops. Well, what would effectively be the sequel to Troops is on the horizon for this Spring and it's title is, I.M.P.S. (Imperial Military Personnel Stories).

There was a news story on it over at TheForce.net and the teaser trailer is there too. Here's a link to the official site.

Now, here's the cool part; if you go to the F.A.Q. at the official site for the fan film under the question, "Who Made This?," alongside the makers of the original Troops, you'll see the name, Nathan Pata. That's Christy's second cousin!! That makes ME, like, an "Heir to the Empire", doesn't it, well, DOESN'T IT?!? At least I could be an Imperial stooge if George ever decides to make Ep. 7, 8 & 9. I'm already practicing my line: "It's them, Blast 'em." or, perhaps, [clears throat] "I have a BAD feeling about this." What do you think? Do I get the part??

Anyway, I met Nathan when we went out to California for Andrew & Carol's wedding. I'm not entirely sure what his full-time job is, but I believe it is in the entertainment/production industry. He has worked on several short films including Free of Rhythm [Watch It].

Thanks to Andrew and Nicki for making me aware of this, and to Nathan for paving my way to early retirement!

Episode III Poster Revealed

So the circle is complete...

Switched At Birth?

This picture was taken a couple of years ago, but is still one of my favorites of Hannah. She had been dragging the toy-lightsaber around by the green end for a while, but eventually found the handle and lifted the other end, striking a perfect "battle stance" for just a moment. Fortunately, I had the camera ready!


Is this better, Prink?

Weekend, etc.

Christy and I had a good day together on her birthday. Had a nice, leisurely lunch together, did some shopping, etc. It was very nice to just have the day to spend together. My company's Christmas party was that same evening so we went to that and had a good time. Our friends who were watching Hannah at their house while we went to the party knew that it was Christy's birthday, so they had brownies and ice cream for us when we got back. Though it was already past Hannah's normal bedtime, Hannah didn't get left out of the festivities. She had ice cream and then didn't get to sleep until after 11:00pm. Also, while we were with our friends that evening they gave a Christmas gift for Hannah and I to share. It was a Playskool Millennium Falcon. I asked Hannah if she knew what it was and she said, "Star Wars." I pointed to one of the figures and asked her, "Who's that?" to which she correctly responded, "Chewbacca." I couldn't have been prouder!

The evening of the 15th was Hannah's Christmas program with her daycare. We got there in plenty of time to get Hannah where she was supposed to be but when we were ready to find a seat, much of the auditorium was full. We managed to find a decent seat in the front row of the balcony section. I was planning to take some pictures anyway (pictures added below - 12/22/04), so I figured I'd be in a good place to take all the pictures I wanted without being in the way of other people behind me. So, it's about an hour long program of which there was about one minute that we really wanted to see, right? So what happens during that one minute? That's right! You guessed it! Some idiot --> (this is the self-censored version) decides to stand right in front of us obstructing our only view of our only daughter in her first public performance. Christy's "excuse me" definitely had an edge, but was still more polite than my, "Hey! -- Buddy!" -- "Buddy" didn't take the hint. So I get up and explain to Buddy that there are people behind him that can't see with him standing there. He still doesn't move. Apparently, Buddy was searching for his idiot friends and, in a glorious stroke of genius, decided that he'd be better able to spot them from a balcony that extends over most of the floor below. So not only did we miss most of our daughter's performance, but the video that I was shooting is a mess due to Buddy's impeccable timing, so when we go back to watch it, we only see the very beginning and the very end of the performance with the middle consisting of jumpy video of the floor and ceiling of the auditorium and the brief exchange of words on the audio.

"It's too bad that stupidity isn't painful" - Anton LaVey

Over the weekend, Christy and I did our annual Christmas treats making and baking marathon. It's a lot of work, but we always have a good time doing it. Moreover, the people who receive the Christmas treats always have a good time consuming them.

For now, Hannah seems to be doing fine. She seems to be over her illnesses and hopefully, that will hold through the next couple of weeks.

I've got a three day work week this week, then I'm off until January 4th! WooHoo!!



Films Recently Watched:

Twelve Monkeys (1995) dir. by Terry Gilliam

Christmas Vacation (1989) dir. by Jeremiah S. Chechik. Written and Produced by John Hughes.

Speaking of Collector's items...

I recently read here that Pat Hannon possesses a "hot holiday seller."

"The Millennium Falcon and the Darth Vader Voice Changer mask have been hot holiday sellers. The hard-to-find mask retails for $35 but is selling on eBay for $150."
(From linked article at usatoday.com)

Seems to me Pat sent me a Halloween picture a few years ago with said mask on said face with said wife in said cat costume. Should I post it??


Films Recently Watched:

A Muppet Family Christmas (1987) Produced by Jim Henson, etc. Dir. by Eric Till
Interesting conglomeration of Jim Henson's creations. The Muppets are traveling to Fozzie's mother's farmhouse for Christmas. While there, the entire Sesame Street gang shows up caroling. And, in the basement of the farmhouse, Kermit discovers a Fraggle hole and briefly visit with a few Fraggle Rock characters. Jim Henson himself even makes a cameo at the end of this holiday treat! Truly, a Muppet Family Christmas.

On a sad note, in need of a replacement for the Christmas Turkey, the Swedish Chef finds Big Bird, or in his words, "Gobbley Gobbley Humonga!" and, well....



Favorite Line [from Animal, of course]: "Peace on Earth; Give me presents!!"


A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965) dir. by Bill Melendez
Truly a Classic.

Favorite line [Lucy on what she REALLY wants for Christmas]: "Real Estate."


It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown (1992)
Favorite Line [Sally, whose one line in the Christmas play is, simply, "Hark!"]: "Hockey Stick!"

My New Desktop Image

Weekend...

Hannah only made it to daycare one day out of five last week. On Monday, she was diagnosed with an eye infection and we were told that she would be contagious until Thursday. Thursday, she went back to daycare and was OK, but that evening, she started complaining that her ear hurt. So Friday, I took her to the doctor and she was diagnosed with an ear infection. After being on her medicine for a couple of days and taking a 4+ hour nap yesterday, she seemed well enough to go back to daycare today. Here's hoping that she does better this week than last. Also hoping that she'll stay well through the holidays.

Since Hannah wasn't quite herself, we stayed in all day Saturday. ALL DAY. Actually, none of us even changed out of our pajamas on Saturday! I love days like that! I know, I know it's pathetic, but every once in a while, I just need a lazy day. Don't you?

In spite of Hannah not being 100%, we made it to church on Sunday. Hannah did OK, but was a little fussy. I couldn't help laughing when Christy told me that she tried to take money out of the offering plate in her classroom! The choir was singing a song that I really liked (it had a great part for we Basses). Sunday evening we started straightening Hannah's room in preparation for family coming for Christmas.


Films Recently Watched:

Empire of Dreams (2004) dir. by Kevin Burns and Edith Becker
If you remember, I picked up the Star Wars Trilogy DVDs on the day they were released. I watched all three films one day and listened to the cast & crew commentary the next day. I dabbled into the bonus material on the 4th disc, but never found time to watch the crown jewel of the supplementaries, the 2 1/2 hour documentary, Empire of Dreams, until now. Christy and I both watched this and found it quite interesting. There were a few items on this that I'd seen before, but the lion's share was new to me. It really describes how these films (especially the first one) were a labor of love for the young filmmaker, George Lucas. Sometimes it's difficult to remember that Lucas wasn't always a multi-millionaire and a media mogul. Lucas' humble beginnings as a film student at USC and the construction of his facilities at Skywalker Ranch (including Lucasfilm, Ltd.; Industrial Light & Magic; Skywalker Sound; LucasArts; THX, Ltd.; and the computer graphics company that ultimately became the mighty Pixar) are touched on in Empire of Dreams, but most of it focuses on the creation of the films themselves. Story, casting, filming, post-production, release...every aspect is given at least some attention. Though many fanboys were begging for an exhaustive "Encyclopedia Starwarsica" to be included with this set, I think this doc. does an excellent job for the more casual fan/enthusiast. Another thing that this doc. shows is that there is definitely the potential for an exhaustive set of bonus features at some time in the future. Some of the footage in Empire of Dreams is obscure and shows that the long-believed rumor is true, "Lucas kept everything."

A Christmas Story (1983) dir. by Bob Clark
First time this year for this classic. Get out your tally sheets!

Mystic River (2003) dir. by Clint Eastwood
Three childhood friends grow up together and, as adults, still live in the same Boston neighborhood. Jimmy Markum (Sean Penn), an ex-con, has retired from his former, crooked life and now runs a legitimate business in his neighborhood. He's a family man, father of three daughters, one of whom ends up dead - murdered. Sean Devine (Kevin Bacon) is the homicide detective assigned to the case. Dave Boyle (Tim Robbins), a victim of sexual abuse as a child, is suspect in the murder. Will the police solve the case before Markum's gang takes matters into their own hands?
Wow, the performances in this film by Sean Penn, Kevin Bacon and Tim Robbins (and the rest of the cast) are terrific! It's no wonder that Penn won the Oscar for his leading role and that Robbins won for his supporting role. Eastwood's pacing on this is right on and helps to create the tension in this suspense/mystery.

Lady And The Tramp (1955) produced by Walt Disney; dir. by Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske

'Revenge Of The Sith' Teaser Poster

To the left (above) is the brand new teaser poster from the new Star Wars film 'Revenge of the Sith" (in theaters May 19, 2005). To the right (above) is the teaser poster from 'The Phantom Menace' that some of you may remember. That TPM poster is one of my favorite movie posters ever. The new ROTS poster is definitely more menacing, but TPM is, by far, more haunting.

Films Recently Watched:

Mr. Deeds Goes To Town (1936) dir. by Frank Capra
Gary Cooper is Longfellow Deeds in this film about a simple man from the small town of Mandrake Falls, Vermont, who inherits a sum of $20 million dollars only to acquire the unwanted turmoil brought on by wealth.

Deeds says something simple, yet profound that stuck with me, he says, "People here are funny. They work so hard at living they forget how to live." Which reminded me of something my friend, Brian, had to say recently over at his blog; "Stillness will not allow itself to be found in a world where the acquisition and maintenance of wealth require constant vigil." Deeds quotes Henry David Thoreau in this film when looking at the New York skyline he says, "I got to thinking about what Thoreau said. 'They created a lot of grand palaces here, but they forgot to create the noblemen to put in them.' I'd rather have Mandrake Falls." Thoreau also wrote, "It is not enough to be busy...the question is: what are we busy about?" And it all goes back to scripture (of course): in Luke 12:15, Jesus says, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions."

Brian, I hope you feel that I've put you in good company, Capra, Thoreau, and God.

This film succeeds at both being a good romantic comedy as well as driving its point home clearly without compromise.

School of Rock (2003) dir. by Richard Linklater
Better than expected. I was hesitant on this one mainly because it starred Jack Black, but I heard enough good comments about it that I decided to give it a try. Jack Black stars as a rock star wannabe/slacker who pretends to be a substitute teacher at a classy prep-school. He eventually tries to turn his class of 10 and 11 year olds into a rock band, complete with groupies, manager, etc. and enter the group into the local "Battle of the Bands." This is not to be confused with Mr. Holland's Opus, but it works as a vehicle for Black's antics without allowing him to go completely over the top (OK, he's over the top on occasion). You didn't see this one up for the Academy's "best picture" for a reason, but the film is, for lack of a better word, "funny & sweet." (I know . . . it's two words, give me a break!)

Fallen (1998) dir. by Gregory Hoblit
My Sister has been hounding me for a year or more to watch this film. Denzel Washington is as good as ever in this supernatural thriller. With a supporting cast including John Goodman, Donald Sutherland, James Gandolfini, and Embeth Davidtz, I think this film succeeds at what it tries to do. I enjoyed it for what it is. I can't help but wonder, though, how much Jerry Ragovoy and his publisher got paid from this film and subsequent video/DVD releases. (Jerry Ragovoy is the writer of the song, "Time Is On My Side," used prominently throughout this film.)