Sad Songs Make Me...Sad(?)

Sometimes I get in a mood where all I want to listen to is something that will hit me like a brick, and one of those moods hit me just minutes ago.  I'm not sure why it happens.  The obvious answer would likely be that it's a manifestation of longing and loneliness, the desire for some greater, authentic soul-to-soul connection that I lack.  I'm sure each and every failure, every squandered opportunity, every word that once burned within me yet remained unsaid contributes to this painful melancholy.  Why is it that we turn to sad music when we're struck with these moods?  There's almost some pleasure in feeling that sadness as much as we possibly can.  Maybe the connection we form with those sad songs eases our pain and tells us we're not alone, that someone else has felt these same feelings.  Though we lack the soul-to-soul connection with another physical human being, we form a similar, less powerful connection with that synthesis of words and music.

Right now I'm listening to "13 Months in 6 Minutes" by the Wrens, one of my favorite sad songs.  I recently read an interview with Charles Gessell, one of the band's guitarists/vocalists/songwriters, and he was asked if most of the songs and the people mentioned in the songs were real people.  He stated that most of them were based on real people, but the names were fictional.  He mentioned, however, that "13 Months in 6 Minutes" was absolutely autobiographical.  This makes the song hit me all the more.  It's not about some intense breakup; it's just a gradual drifting apart.  And there is such remorse and regret in Charles's lyrics.  He admits to messing up, to being a fool, and his inability to change the situation haunts him (and me).  The line "I'm a footnote at best / I envy who comes next" has always killed me.  

(I'm currently on my third time listening to the track).  

I know you understand what I'm saying, Justin, as we've talked about this song in the past.  It really goes along well with "I've Made Enough Friends" as sort of the antithesis or the aftermath of what that song expresses.  In fact, I'm going to play that flawless song right now.  As much as I love these songs, I hope to sleep off this melancholy.  The last thing I need is to be all mopey and forlorn to kick off a new week.

Here are the lyrics to "13 Months in 6 Minutes" for those unfamiliar with them:

not yet 21 - with introductions done - a first slow dance just ends.

I was at my best - we ignored the rest (my band and your friends).

But as better night became best day we left the party while last records played. 

What started as dessert back at your house ended on the couch…

hours at your mouth…sunday’s on our hands. We followed where it led. 

I followed you to bed. We started secret plans.

Forward 7 months: I’ve only seen you once…I never call on time. 

Trying to seem tough, I said one visit’s enough - enough to keep you mine (of course it wasn’t…)

We were done by june. You’d graduate and leave forlondon soon. 

Your layover at newark’s near my house. We met for dinner there…

just one hour to spare - your 20’s all mapped out. I’m in my driest drought 

feeling old and shot and how.

And this is what I thought: I seem to still be caught…

I’m a footnote at best…I envy who comes next…wish we could just make out. 

‘The hour’s almost up’, you said into your cup. And it makes no difference now, as I help lift your bags out, that I’m lost and out of rope while on my wrist you wrote your newest number down. 

I kind of said your name but you’d turned to your plane so I backed my car out. 

I knew we’d never write (somehow that seemed all right) but this counts as calling three years out.

And then the awesome coda at the end with the chord progression that I wish was stretched for another 6 minutes and that aching melody with the lyrics that are just too faint to comprehend.  This is a perfect song.

Winter Passing

Yesterday I rented 'Winter Passing' from my local Hollywood video. I am surprised at our selection sometimes. We have a great selection of independent and foreign movies. I love my store. Anyway, I watched it last night and it left me a little frustrated. Why? Because once again Will Ferrell proved that he can act if he really wants to. If the guy can just refrain from having to be the center of attention all the time he can do quality work. However, I think quality is pretty low on his priority list. Moron. Once again Ed Harris proved that he is a great actor with so much range. He was great in this, he played a good cowboy in appaloosa, played Jackson Pollack flawlessly, and many many other great roles. He can be good or bad it doesn't matter. He is terrific and I always love watching him. Good movie, thanks for the recommendation. I had never even heard of it before, and that's pretty rare for me. Not that I am all knowing but the people at work have called me a walking database. I liked that. It made me feel cool and totally nerdy. Zooey was also ridiculously cute and adorable as she tends to be. Even when she is supposed to be cracked out she still manages to be a cutie.

I don't know why my computer is not letting me leave comments. Stupid computer. I liked happenstance when i saw it and i really like the fact that you said that Audrey Tautou was the Audrey Hepburn of her generation. I like it because now I have said that, you have said that, and a girl that i used to work with said that. She has that same charm and likeability that the first Audrey had on top of their obvious talent. Audrey Tautou's performance in Amelie is one of my all time favorite female performances. I also really dig 'Batman Begins.' I really like Cillian Murphy and i wish he were in more movies. A couple of months ago at work a customer told me that i have the same exact profile as him. He said not so much from the front, but our profiles are identical. That made me feel pretty cool so i thought i would throw that in there.

Ooh and i just watched this fantastic documentary called 'Murder on a Sunday Morning.' I don't know if you have seen this or not but if you haven't you really should. Really well made and really interesting. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Also, our stupid theater here in Cedar finally got The Reader and The Wrestler. It's about time. That made me so mad that it took so long and i had to find different ways of watching them.

Movie Musings - 09 March 2009

There seems to be a theme amongst a majority of the films I muse about in this entry:  they feature adorable actresses that I cannot resist.  The presence of those actresses usually guarantees a decent level of enjoyment when viewing their films, and that's not just because I find them beautiful.  I appreciate and admire their talent as well.  They just have an effortless way of winning me over.  Anyway, I know you understand my way of thinking, Justin.  I'm pretty sure we agree on these three actresses' high quality.  On we go!

How to Steal a Million (1966) - directed by William Wyler.

Date Viewed: 08 March 2009.  My Rating:  3 1/2 stars.

It's been a good time for movie watching lately.  I found myself invited to watch this film with a group of people Sunday afternoon so I accepted the invitation.  Unfortunately, losing an hour of sleep made it impossible for me to stay awake throughout the entire film.  There was a good portion of the middle-third of the film that I missed.  Nonetheless, what I saw was quite good, but that's pretty much a given with an Audrey Hepburn film.  If there is one woman in this world that I would travel back in time to marry, it would be Audrey Hepburn.  She is simply irresistibly adorable in her films, and, to make things even better, she was a fantastic person in real life.  She is her normal adorable self in this film, and it is a pretty good romantic comedy/heist film.  There is good chemistry between Audrey and Peter O'Toole, as well as many comedic moments.  Just a very fun movie overall.

Batman Begins (2005) - directed by Christopher Nolan.

Date Viewed:  08 March 2009.  My Rating:  4 stars.

I happened to watch this on TV Sunday night.  I was chilling with some homeboys, and we were hoping to find something to do around our apartment complex.  Nothing really turned up so we watched the movie as we waited futilely.  This is a very solid movie, and Christian Bale delivers a fantastic performance as Bruce Wayne/Batman.  As a character study, it succeeds admirably.  I actually wish The Dark Knight had spent a little more time delving into Bruce Wayne's psychology a little more.  While I don't think this movie was groundbreaking --- other than revitalizing the Batman series --- I like it a lot and can't really find many faults with it.  Bale has a very good supporting cast, and a director that seems to really care about the franchise.  I am excited, albeit somewhat reserved, to see how well the third Nolan-directed Batman will turn out. 

Happenstance (2000) - directed by Laurent Firode.

Date Viewed:  08 March 2009.  My Rating: 3 1/2 stars.

Well, another French movie.  This one features the adorable Audrey Tautou, and any film she is in will get at least an extra 1/2 star just for her presence.  She is basically our generation's Audrey Hepburn, and the two actresses share more than just a first name.  She is always so appealing and has such grace on screen.  Even when her characters might not seem like the most empathetic person, it's hard to think too poorly of them.  I always find myself enraptured with her characters.  I wonder how I'd react if she were to portray a truly reprehensible person onscreen.  Anyway, this movie was worth watching just to see how cute Ms. Tautou is when her character says, "Oui," within the first five minutes of the film.  I would pretty much do anything for a female capable of looking so beautiful, bashful, and innocent while saying, "Yes."  It's true.

The film itself is about how interconnected the lives of human beings truly are.  The film highlights how even the smallest decision someone makes can affect the lives of others around them.  It works better at times than it does at others, but it is an enjoyable little film.  My Audrey Tautou bias had me wanting to see her character onscreen more frequently, but the restrictions employed by the narrative required that the other characters get their fair share of screen time.  I understand why the writer and director chose to take the story one way, but some of the characters just seem unnecessary.  Certain plot developments just seem forced in order to continue the interconnected motif.  Still, the film is quite charming, and Audrey Tautou is as lovely as ever.

Winter Passing (2005) - directed by Adam Rapp.

Date Viewed: 09 March 2009.  My Rating: 4 stars.

This is an excellent independent film; it is very well-acted, subtle and moving.  And it features Zooey Deschanel in the lead performance, and she has many of the same qualities as Audrey Tautou described above.  Zooey is definitely one of my favorite actresses, and she doesn't disappoint in this film.  She plays Reese, the daughter of two intellectual novelist parents working as an actor in the New York.  The film picks up shortly after her mother's death.  Reese is somewhat estranged from her family, and when an editor offers her a large sum of money to publish her parents love letters, Reese is forced to confront some emotional issues as she returns to the family home in Michigan.  Ed Harris is excellent as her father, and Will Ferrell is pretty good in an offbeat, but low key role as a boarder in her home.

I really, really liked Zooey's performance in this film.  Her character is far from perfect and struggles to deal with some emotional issues throughout the film, but Zooey's portrayal is honest and poignant.  She is able to communicate so much without saying a word.  She really is extremely talented (and she can sing too!).  Perhaps the perfect woman...  Curse you, Ben Gibbard.  

Justin, I don't know if you'll find this in Hollywood Video, but it is available for online watching at Netflix until March 15th.

We Own the Night (2007) - directed by James Gray.

Date Viewed:  09 March 2009.  My Rating: 2 1/2 stars.

When I first heard the premise for the film and saw the trailer, I had high hopes for this film.  Then it was poorly received critically, and my desire to see the film basically disappeared.  I threw it on my Netflix queue and basically forgot about it.  I finally got around to streaming it online.  The acting is decent in the film, but that's expected with a cast like Joaquin Phoenix, Mark Wahlberg, and Robert Duvall.  The film tries so hard to be epic, but it never reaches the heights it aspires to.  And I kept getting distracted by the soundtrack.  They kept returning to this motif that sounded like a music box or child's lullaby or something; it just seemed really out of place for a film about the Russian mafia and New York officers of the law.  The film was barely entertaining, and I struggled to remain interested in any of the characters.  I don't see myself returning to this film any time soon, if ever.

First off, I love the movie musings. You must keep them coming. Secondly, I really want to talk about Synecdoche but I have no idea what to say about it.....I feel like there is a lot of meaning that I am not getting and I still really liked it. I would give it 4 stars, on a 5 star scale of course. I really wanted to understand but I just couldn't. I would probably have to watch it many more times. Like you said, I personally have no idea what was real and what wasn't. I'm not....I don't know.

Movie Musings - 07 March 2009

Yeah, more moving musings!

Paranoid Park (2007) - directed by Gus Van Sant

Date Viewed: 05 March 2009.  My Rating: 3 1/2 stars.

This film is about Alex, a sixteen year old skater, who is involved in the accidental death of a security guard, and the psychological effects that has on him.  Van Sant definitely approached this film much differently than he did Milk, which was pretty convention.  Paranoid Park strives for a different effect.  There are lots of long, tracking shots, slow motion close-ups on the actors' faces, and long stretches of movie without dialogue, just music and good manipulation of diegetic (fancy word: means from within the film's world) sound, especially water sounds (rain, a shower, etc.).  The film moves slowly and provides an interesting experience.  I enjoyed it, but I guess I wanted a little more.  Some of the acting leaves a little to be desired.  Most of all, I wanted more resolution.  It's worth seeing, and it clocks in at a short 82 minutes.

Corpse Bride (2005) - directed by Tim Burton.

Date Viewed: 06 March 2009.  My rating: 3 1/2 stars.

This is just a fun little film.  I felt like watching a movie last night before sleeping, and with a short running time, Corpse Bride was a perfect choice.  I really don't have much to say about this film.  It's entertaining, moves pretty quickly, and, while it doesn't do anything too spectacular, it's also consistently good in pretty much every way.  We need more stop-animation films.

I've Loved You So Long (2008) - directed by Philippe Claudel.

Date Viewed:  07 March 2008.  My Rating: 5 stars.

I know it's cool to be all anti-France and whatnot, but I love French cinema.  The French New Wave in the 60's was incredibly influential, and films like Truffaut's The 400 Blows are still amazing and some of my favorite films.  I need to watch more French films.  Contemporary works like Amelie and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly are some of the best films I've seen, and I'm sure there are so many other great films waiting for me somewhere.  So many movies, so little time.  

Anyway, I first heard of I've Loved You So Long on Rotten Tomatoes.  I remember seeing it was being very well-received by critics, and I even saw that it would be playing at the Broadway theater in Salt Lake.  Unfortunately, I never made the trip to see it.  I read a lot of good things about the lead performance by Kristin Scott Thomas.  I decided to take a look at the Redbox selection while I was grocery shopping at Smiths earlier today.  I saw they had this film so I entered in a promo code and got a free rental.  I came home, ate some lunch, and immediately put the film on.

That was a very good decision on my part.  This is a fantastic film, and it deserves more recognition than it received here in the U.S.  Let it be known that Kristin Scott Thomas deserved an Oscar nomination, and I would put her subtle and moving performance up there with the best performances of the year.  She showed tremendous emotion with incredible subtlety.  I thought Anne Hathaway was fantastic in Rachel Getting Married, but I think it must be somewhat easier to show deep emotion when your character is a wreck.  You can yell and scream and act out as manifestations of your pain, but in this film, Kristin Scott Thomas was able to do so much with calm and restraint.  Her one big emotional scene is all the more powerful because of the reserved manner she'd used prior to that moment.  Really a fantastic performance.  I don't want to give away too much of the plot because I thought the way the film reveals the story layer by layer was incredibly well-done.

This film really moved me.  There are a lot of very good performances.  In fact, it's one of those films without a forced or poor performance.  Every character was perfectly cast and well-acted.  Everything about the film is high quality.  I read some one's comment on imdb.com (how I love that site!) and they described the film as a "subtle, empathetic presentation of characters," and I couldn't agree more.  Had I seen this film back in 2008, I'm confident it would have made my list of favorite films for that year.  It's just a beautiful film and completely deserving of 5 stars.  I plan on watching this again in the future.  Thank you, France.

Justin, I'm curious if you've seen this film.  If so, what did you think?  If not, I think you and Jesse should watch it and tell me what you think.

Watchmen

Jesse and I saw "Watchmen" this afternoon and overall I still am not sure what my feelings are. To get things straight to begin with, I love the graphic novel. I think it is a fantastic piece of literature. Now that we got that out of the way. There was both good and bad in the movie.
First off I was planning on doing an 'oscar watch' section on my page but I didn't think I was going to have to start it until about July or August. But my oscar watch has already officially started. Jackie Earle Haley was absolutely brilliant as Rorschach. He embodied that character and brought him straight from the comic onto the screen. I didn't feel like there was any difference in the characters at all. He also does what I will refer to as "almost batman voice." But it's awesome. He understood that there was a fine line between being intimidating and sounding ridiculous. You can understand every word that he says. Don't get me wrong, it is nowhere near as extreme as Christian Bale's stupid batman voice. He just puts some grunge in his voice and I loved it. How this guy fell out of acting for almost fifteen years is beyond me. He is a brilliant actor and that is why he won the Justademy for best supporting actor two years ago. His performance in Little Children is also nothing short of brilliant but once again the academy has a love affair with Alan Arkin and with perverted old men roles. Rorschach is my favorite character in the book and I couldn't have asked for a better portrayal of him onscreen. Absolutely loved him. Jackie Earle Haley in the running early for best supporting actor. Too bad movies like this don't get much credit.
On the other hand Malin Ackerman is a horrible actress. She hurt the movie for me a little bit because she just simply cannot act. She has terrible delivery and even worse is she has absolutely no emotion ever.....at all. She was a terrible choice to play that part but I also am not a fan of her character.
One thing that was really weird for me was when Dr. Manhattan spoke. I knew Billy Crudup was playing him but his voice still took me by surprise. As I read the novel I always pictured him having a much deeper voice, and Billy's just isn't. I wish his voice would have been deeper but that wasn't a big deal at all. Just personal preference, but it has zero bearing on the overall impression of the movie. And they didn't do what I thought they would. They actually showed his penis throughout the movie. There is a whole lot of penis in this movie. I was a little surprised. I also completely dug Jeffrey Dean Morgan's portrayal of the comedian. He was fantastic and portrayed him just how I would have.
Now the thing that bothered me the most about this movie was the music. This has to be the worst use of music I have ever seen in a movie. Seriously. It felt like I was watching a movie and somebody was sitting by me listening to a totally unrelated cd. It drove me nuts. The music didn't fit at all, it made you feel awkward, and it made everything on screen look awkward. I have no idea what Zack Snyder was going for, but it didn't work at all. At all. There were also some terrible decisions made by the director and obviously the editor as well. There were some scenes at certain moments that were horribly directed and looked very clumsy. Mr. Snyder does love his sex scenes and over the top violence, he didn't cheat anybody out of that. The one sex scene between Dreiberg and Laura on the ship is so exaggerated in the movie and semi-pornographic. He did this in 300 as well. But it wasn't all bad, this movie has some of the coolest moments in a movie that I have ever seen. Some actions sequences and the special effects are absolutely brilliant. Overall for me I just felt like the movie lacked the depth and emotion that the novel had. I really felt like Zack Snyder misinterpreted meanings and scenes because he shot some things in a comedic way and portrayed them like they were supposed to be funny and I really don't think that was the intention. Overall after writing this and thinking about the movie for about seven hours now I realized that I enjoyed it. The action sequences are awesome and the movie doesn't fail to entertain. It didn't feel like a 2 hour and 40 minute movie at all. I would give it 3 1/2 out of 5 stars. I would like to know your thoughts on this Chris when you see it, or if you already have.

I want an award

I have never listened to autolux, but thanks to your post i definitely want to now. So now i will get on with it and listen to them. And yes, i do know who is very deserving of this award, and they better get on with it and quick. Or else....

p.s. I tore the house down with my speech today. When you gave me the idea about talking about the different editing styles it all came together. I couldn't transition from one thing to another, but when you gave me that idea, it all just came to me. Thank you Chris. My speech rocked.

The "Get On With It!" Award - #1

The idea for this blog came to me one afternoon at work.  I was probably quite bored, listening to my ipod, and then bam! the idea struck me so forcefully that I had to write it down in the little notebook I carry with me everywhere.

The "Get On With It!" Award (think back to Monty Python and the Holy Grail) was created in order to draw awareness to an artist or band that needs to kick things into gear.  They have undoubtedly created something brilliant in the past, something that has rocked me and/or moved me, but I am getting impatient for something new and equally brilliant.  Franz Ferdinand would have been a perfect recipient of this award two months ago.  Prior to the end of January 2009, they hadn't put out an album for over three years.  That is simply too long for me to wait.  While I'm sad that I can't bestow this award upon them, I am happier now that they have released their third album (which I have been rocking a lot lately).

The first recipient of the "Get On With It!" Award, is not the most deserving.  No, that band will get theirs very soon.  You know who I am talking about, Justin.  No, this winning band happens to be none other than Autolux.  Autolux is a trio from Los Angeles that I first listened to back in late 2005/early 2006.  I was immediately impressed with their sound, not surprising once I found out that their guitarist, Greg Edwards, was in Failure.  Their debut record, Future Perfect, is one of the best sounding albums I've listened to.  Not only are the songs great, but the production is fantastic.  I love the way all the instruments sound.  The guitar tone is deep and heavy, but not overbearing.  The vocals, both male and female, are, I want to say, calm and placed perfectly in the mix.  The contrast between the vocals and instrumentation is very striking, but it all works so well together.  And the drumming of Carla Azar is pretty amazing.  Really, just great stuff.

Future Perfect was released in the fall of 2004, more than a year before I ever listened to it.  It's been over four years since then, and, quite frankly, it's time to get moving, Autolux.  Thankfully, their second album, Transit Transit, is scheduled to be released sometime this year.  It is definitely one of my most highly anticipated albums of the year, but until it actually hits the airwaves or internet-waves (?), I'll just have to keep listening to the fantastic music they've already put out.

I've added nine Autolux tracks to my playlist for the uninitiated.  I think we listened to their album on the way back from the Decemberists concert at the Oregon State Fair, Justin.  That was awhile ago, wasn't it?  Anyway, congratulations Autolux.  Now get on with it!  

Sasquatch, I'm coming!

As I reported on my other blog, I spent last Friday and Saturday camped out in line for the BYU-Utah basketball game.  I mentioned being relieved in line for long enough to return to my apartment, take a shower, and pick up some pizza.  What I forgot to mention was that I was home long enough to order my 3-day pass to the 2009 Sasquatch music festival.  I must say that I am pretty freaking stoked for the festivities.

Justin, you really need to find a way to make this work.  Like I said before, I am more than willing to help make this happen.  Imagine seeing the Wrens again.  I know that's all I really need to say.  Let me know what the status is because tickets are cheaper the earlier you get them.  My good buddy Whitney (from the Whitris Fruits movie I made my freshman year and which I believe I showed you) and I will definitely be heading up there from P-Town so there will be room in a car for you and yours.  Anyway, that's all I wanted to say about that in this post.

Netflix the Oppressor

The dang comment box was giving me serious problems so this comment just turned into a post instead.
Stupid netflix trying to tell people how many movies they can put in their queue. 500 movies in a queue is pretty dang impressive though. I know there are so many movies that i need to see but this last week i am feeling like i have seen everything worth seeing. Obviously that's not true, but it's how i feel lately. And no way could i watch all those movies before adding another one. I think that's just crazy talk. I wonder if we got the movies for next week into work today. Synecdoche should be in there. I am going to go check right.........now!

Why Netflix? Why?!

I routinely visit Netflix, often just to randomly browse the selection or to see if anything new has been made available for online streaming.  About an hour ago, I was at the site, and I tried to add a film to my queue.  I clicked on add and everything was going as it should, but the normal confirmation window didn't pop up.  Instead I received a message telling me that I had reached 500 films on my queue and could not add any more to it until I either watched or removed some of those movies on my queue.  I was disappointed that there was a limit to my queue, but I guess it's not surprising or anything.

I've been a Netflix subscriber since the fall of 2005, and my queue has never gotten shorter.  Being a film major didn't help.  I would essentially leave each film class with a couple movies to add to my queue, and yadda yadda yadda my queue is too long now.  I've got to find a way to get through all those movies.  I've seriously got at least two years' worth of films in my queue, more if I keep watching at the glacial pace I've maintained the last six months.

I'm almost tempted to not add another film to my queue until I watch every last one that's on there right now, but I don't know if I could do that.  Do you think you could do that, Justin?  It would require immense self-discipline on my part.  Then again, I'm not sure I want to do it.  I know without a doubt that there are amazing films not on my queue.  Why should I prevent myself from watching a great film at any time?  Forget that idea. 

Movie Musings

I've decided that I will write at least one paragraph about every film I view for this blog.  I'll give a quick little review and whatnot.  It won't be anything super comprehensive unless the particular film warrants a more copious discussion.  I should probably come up with a catchy little name for this segment, but I'll work on that later.  I'm going to start with last Friday and catch up to the present day.

Troll 2 (1990) - directed by Claudio Fragasso.   

Date viewed: 27 February 2009.  My rating: 1/2 star (or 4 1/2 stars for being so awesomely terrible).

According to various sources on the internet, Troll 2 is basically the worst movie ever made, and for that reason, it has become quite famous as one of the best bad movies ever made.  And let me tell you, it is terrible --- and hilarious.  We watched this while camping out Friday night, and it was scary (in how bad it was) and very entertaining, especially if you love movies that are so bad they're good.  First off, there are no trolls in this movie.  That's right, a movie called Troll 2 is actually about goblins that live in a town called Nilbog and try to eat any tourists that pass through.  The writing is atrocious and the acting only accentuates how poorly it is written.  My favorite line of the movie is delivered by evil goblin who disguises himself as a preacher.  When Joshua, the protagonist, is saved by his dad and taken away from the goblins, the preacher, with a scowl on his face and a menacing tone in his voice, says "We need time for some things to happen."  I recommend the film to anyone who wants to have fun with one of the worst films of all time.

The Interpreter (2005) - directed by Sydney Pollack.

Date Viewed:  28 February 2009.  My Rating: 2 1/2 stars.

This movie had been in my Netflix queue since the beginning days of my membership in the fall of 2005.  I decided to finally give it a go Saturday night, and it worked well enough as a mildly entertaining film.  The acting is decent, about what one would expect from a cast including Sean Penn, Catherine Keener, and Nicole Kidman, directed by the veteran Sydney Pollack.  The film was pretty pedestrian, and I didn't really feel much for any of the characters.  Their grief seemed a little too manufactured, probably the script's fault more than anything, but when the film finished, it left me exactly as I'd been before I watched it.  Like I said, it worked well enough for mild entertainment, but that's it.

Synecdoche, New York (2008) - directed by Charlie Kaufman.

Date Viewed:  01 March 2009.  My Rating: at least 4 stars (will likely change with time).

This is a film that very few people heard about and even fewer people saw.  It played in the state of Utah at one theater for about two weeks.  I was upset when it left the theater before I could make a trip to SLC to see it.  Anyway, Synecdoche is the directorial debut of acclaimed screenwriter Charlie Kaufman (Being John Malkevich, Adaptation, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind --- one of my favorite films of all-time), and I had been waiting impatiently to see this film.  Critics seemed to have one of two responses to the film:  either they loved it and declared it a masterpiece, or they absolutely disliked or hated it.  Any film that polarizes critics like that is doing something unique and could hardly pass as fodder for the mainstream movie going public.

It won't surprise anyone familiar with Kaufman's work that this narrative is complex, blurring the distinctions between reality and dreams.  I wasn't always sure what was going on in the film, whether it was truly happening or whether we were in the head of the film protagonist, Caden Cotard (played by the ever-impressive Phillip Seymour Hoffman who knocks this role out of the park).  After I finished watching the film, I wasn't sure how to react.  Kaufman definitely has a lot on his plate in this film, and he's tackling some heavy personal issues (life and death, love, the role of art, etc.) and it can be difficult, perhaps impossible, to truly know what he's saying.  But, to some extent, what he's saying through his film may not be as important as what the viewer hears for themselves.

I texted Justin after I watched it and told him that watching Synecdoche is like going to a buffet after fasting for a couple days:  it's going to take some time to digest everything.  It's been one day since I watched it and I'm still not sure that I've been able to process even a tiny portion of what is going on in this film.  It will definitely require another viewing or two.  How then, if there's still so much I need to process, could I rate the movie so high?  Despite the complexity of the narrative, Kaufman is sincere and genuine in his search for meaning, and there are some truly powerful and poignant moments in the film.  Eternal Sunshine left me feeling similarly befuddled after my first viewing, but each subsequent viewing has revealed greater emotional depth and wisdom and I expect Synecdoche to reveal itself to me in the same manner.

I recommend this movie only to those willing to approach the film with an open heart and mind.  This is a very serious film for mature audiences, so watching it with a group of people unaccustomed to serious cinema will prove disastrous.

Late night texts

Dude, sorry i keep getting your texts when i get off of work and then i don't feel that i should respond because it's about midnight. So I apologize, but i am excited because we should be getting synechdoche this week so I should be seeing it in a couple of days. I really hope Charlie Kaufman doesn't disappoint me like Wes Anderson did with his most recent film. I wasn't a huge fan of "The Darjeeling Limited." You said it would take a couple of days to digest, so hopefully when it all does I will have seen it by then and we will be able to discuss. Gone.