AJM thought The New Yorker review was too kind.
January 7, 2007
Children of Men
“It’s not about imagining and being creative, it is about referencing reality. So — the cinematographer, he said that not a single frame of this film can go by making a comment about the state of things. So everything became about reference — and not reference about what is around, like, oh, I’m walking around, and this is what I saw on the street, but about how this has relevance in the context of the state of things, of the reality that we are living today.” — Alfonso Cuaron Interview with Kim Voynar in Cinematical
August 29, 2006
All the Names
“…memory… is very sensitive and hates to be found lacking, tends to fill in any gaps with its own spurious creations of reality”
August 10, 2006
Match Point
Do you have to sympathize with a character to find him interesting? I find myself attracted by otherness, an alien-ness that I don’t understand.
July 17, 2006
Alamo House
I’m biased towards novels that evoke a concrete sense of place. Bram Stoker described Whitby so accurately that I felt giddy with recognition when I saw it. Fiction makes familiar the streets of San Francisco, the burroughs of New York, and the glitter of LA. However, portrayals of Smalltown, USA, tend more toward the metaphorical than the actual. Curious about how other writers set their works in a mid-sized city
December 9, 2005
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
The power of myth.
Recommended. Especially for literalists who want to understand the power of myth.
October 1, 2005
Serenity
Whedon has to trade his strengths to bring Firefly to the big screen. Serenity succeeds as an action picture, but loses the elements we loved the most about Firefly. It’s the reaction, not the action, that counts.
May 27, 2005
Infernal Affairs
When you live a lie too long, how can you know the truth?
Bottom Line: Highly Recommended. See the original version, not the American remake.
April 23, 2005
Kung Fu Hustle
Live action cartoon. I could not stop laughing. Belly-clutching, knee-slapping laughter. Absolutely preposterous.
Bottom Line: Recommended, but not for the kiddies. Violent.
December 15, 2004
In His Arms
In His Arms: A Novel.
Camille Laurens. Translated by Ian Monk.
Random House. 2000.
ISBN 0-375-50652-7
September 24, 2004
Bright Young Things
The Friday movie group consisted of me, AJM, and M2. First we dined at Manuel’s, which is celebrating its twentieth anniversary. (Katz’s is celebrating its 25th.) I’m sure my patronage has done a lot to keep them both in business. I’ve been a faithful consumer of both from the beginning.
Bottom Line: Not Recommended. Flat.
September 18, 2004
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow
AJM got home from work at 15:30. I had just finished painting the bedroom ceiling, showered, and was sitting wrapped in a towel, combing the tangles of of my hair. With the impulse of young lovers, we dashed to the Alamo Drafthouse at the Village to watch
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow.