2004 IN REVIEW
I was going to just make a list, like "the top ten movies of 2004" and/or "the top ten albums of 2004," but my personal experiences in 2004 are pretty limited. So, instead, I'll just briefly go over some things that affected me, or at least provoked some sort of reaction from me in 2004.
MOVIES
1. Passion Of The Christ / Fahrenheit 9/11
I lump these two together because they basically served the same purpose and got the same-ish reaction out of me. For both movies, I heard people were either furious or deeply moved. I saw both in the theater and for each of them, I saw/heard people weeping. Both times I rolled my eyes. I knew what each film was all about before I stepped foot into the theater, but I needed to see what all the controversy was about.
"Passion" was a fairly well shot and acted showpiece with no story whatsoever. It simply showed the beating of Jesus. Without any sort of background into the story, all the grue in the world is pointless. Basically, the movie was a litmus test. It required the viewer to fill in the blanks. Personally, I thought it was nothing special. I wasn't offended by the depiction of Jews. If anything, the ancient Romans came off worse...and yet I don't leave the theater with a hatred of ancient Romans. Honestly, I left the theater going, "Umm...alright...that's it? What was all the fuss?"
"9/11" was everything I expected. Some new information, but basically it was a fairly well-edited tirade against George Bush. I already have my mind made up about the president, and this did nothing to change it or call me to stronger action. I was disappointed because I know Moore can do better. Honestly, I left the theater going, "Umm...alright...that's it? What was all the fuss?"
2. The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Just a great, great movie. Some of the twist and turns seemed a little forced, but overall, the writing was brilliant. The movie unravels like a puzzle and demands discussion afterwards. This was not the kind of movie you walk out of and say, "Where do you wanna eat?" Like Memento and Mulholland Drive, two other wonderful mind-scamblers, I finished the movie and wanted to discuss it right away! "See, she knew about the murder, but not until AFTER she forgot it about it. See, that was BEFORE the time travel back to after the murder..." I love that stuff.
3. A brief list of other really good movies this year:
The Incredibles, Sky Captain and the World Of Tomorrow, Shaun Of The Dead, Harry Potter 3, Spider Man 2
TELEVISION
1. Friends
Friends ended this year. It used to be a really fun show, but it died about 3 seasons ago and nobody had the heart to stop paying the actors. The season sucked and so did the finale.
2. Joey
Have you actually watched this crap? I do. Every week. I SO want it to be funny. Every week there's one thing that makes me laugh and 20 that make go, "ugh!" I keep tuning in to see if it can make it to TWO things that make me laugh. Whenever I find myself saying, "Oh, Joey's not THAT bad..." I tune in to FRIENDS and see how it's supposed to be done. FRIENDS is by no means a classic for the generations, but it's funny and well written and I like it. JOEY is a dopey, dumb sitcom that I hope will get cancelled soon so I can stop watching it.
3. Lost
We watched the first 2 weeks of this and then Kat watched it for a month or so after I gave up. I thought it would be a simple survival story, which intrigued me. Then they added giant monsters, weird characters and strange goings-on. I wasn't ready for it and bailed. I thought it was going to go into "bad sci-fi action" territory. Then I kept reading these reviews which priased it to no end. I thought to myself, "too bad I gave up on it. Oh well." Then CBS decided to reshow it from the beginning in 2-hour blocks. I had to try again. I did, and now I'm freakin' hooked! It's so good and suspenseful and you just wanna know what the hell is going on! I recommend that if you haven't been watching it, get the DVD of season 1 as soon as it comes out and gorge yourself.
4. That HP commercial
I love that commercial with the guy putting pictures over his face and they just appear.
MUSIC
The only two albums that stick out in my mind were William Shatner's Has Been and Green Day's American Idiot. I already reviewed Has Been and American Idiot reviews can be found everywhere on the internet and in every magazine. Suffice to say, I really think both albums are extraordinary.
DEAD PEOPLE
1. Spalding Gray
That really sucked. I liked his stuff a lot. Not so much the acting, but the monologues. He was depressed all his life and finally decided to kill himself after seeing BIG FISH with his kids. He was just such a sad guy, but could be very funny. Even though he wasn't really famous, his is the celebrity death I'll be most sad about.
2. Marlon Brando
I loved Brando, but he'd just turned into such a wacko that he couldn't act anymore. As far as I was concerned, he had died 15 years ago. I was sad to hear he died, but he was 80 years old and treated himself and everyone around him like crap. He was a great actor in his day and a huge influence on countles people. I just think he was finished bringing his art to the world.
3. Ronald Reagan
I won't go into this too much because I won't be able to stop. I'll simply say this: He wasn't so great.
THE REAL WORLD
1. Allison Rose Lichter
Allie was born on August 17 this year. This is basically the biggest event of the year for me. I won't kvell too much, but here's her site, which I encourage you all to look at at least once a month: ALLIE
2. The Election
Again, I don't want to go too deep into this, because many other people have covered it better. But I can't express how disappointed I am that Bush won. This is not a matter of winnin g for the sake of winning. I believe the country and the world would be a better place if Kerry had won. I didn't want to win so I could gloat. I wanted to win so less human beings would die and more people could be healthy and happy. I don't doubt that most Republicans want the same thing and I try to keep that in mind. We just believe there are different ways to acheive this. I just read about the collapse of the British Empire and see many similarites to what this administration is doing around the world and I get scared. I hope we get through these 4 years unscathed.
3. The Tsunamis
The amount of damage to the world by this one event is just staggering. It gets worse and worse every day. There is definitely a part of me that says, "It's nature. There's nothing anyone could have done. It's a shame, but it's pointless to dwell on it." I've always been a pragmatist like that. Murder is horrible, but natural "disasters" are part of this planet. Conversely, I know that if the tsunami had hit Europe or North America, the world's politics would be thrown in utter turmoil. I feel like this is the kind of tragedy that should bring the world together, like in Sci-Fi films, when aliens attack and all the warring Earth countries come together to fight the common fight. It's utter deflating to see this is not happening. Also, I've always associated Apple computer with Liberal Democrat Hippies, while Microsoft has always seemed like Conservative Republicans to me. Apple Computer's website has replaced all their advertisements on their main page with links to donate to help tsunami victims. Microsoft's main page has nothing even slightly humanitarian. Not that it's their responsibility to do so, but it just re-affirms my love for Apple.
Anyway, that's all I've got. For more, go check out my brother's awesome blog that puts mine to shame: RUSS
Sunday, December 12, 2004
STEVE BARNES
My friend, Steve, is very unhapy with me. He feels that, since he can't be bothered to make up a blog for himself, it's my responsibility to post his news. So without further ado, here's what's going on with Steve the last few months:
On The Simpsons the other week, Apu, the Indian convenience store clerk decided to leave the country and change his identity. "Apu? Who's Apu? My name is Steve Barnes," Apu is quoted as saying in the episode after donning a blond wig and glasses. It was quite funny and I'll post a clip of it when I get around to doing so.
Steve bought a car on Ebay around 6 months ago or so. It was a 1977 ChryslerTown and Country station wagon. He bought it for a few thousand and paid to have it shipped to NY from California. He has since dumped several more thousands into it to get it running well. It's a beautiful machine and I can't wait to see it completely renovated.
Last month he decided to surprise his wife with another Ebay special; this time, a 1977 Chevy Nova. "Stick with what ya know!" he tells me. The car was in Jersey and Steve was going to spend 7 hours and take trains and buses to get there to pick it up. I honorably offered to drive him. It would be like a mini-road trip. We scheduled it for Thursday. Wednesday night, I came home from work feeling dopey and tired. It got worse and worse and it became clear that I was miserably sick. I spent the night shivering and sweating in the basement. I woke up on Thursday and called in sick from work. As the day progressed, I began to feel better. By late afternoon, I felt I was well enough to help Steve out and called to tell him so. He picked me up and away we went, but not before showing off his new walkie talkies! He put one in the kitchen and took the other to the bathroom to prove that they worked. Swell. Steve paid for my coffee and for all tolls (with a second EZ pass) and we arrived in Jersey around 7:30ish. The transaction completed, we took seperate cars home, walkie-talkieing the whole way home. We stopped at a deserted rest stop for burgers. Steve dropped the Nova off at his mechanics' and I took him back to my house, where he picked up his old car and went home. Wow! What a crazy trip.
Recently, Steve was a guest on Money Talk on WLIE 540am that aired on Saturday November 11, 2004 at 10am and lasted until 10:30am. He discussed year end tax planning for individuals. I will get a clip of this as well, but I missed the actual broadcast by one hour.
As more of my friends' news comes up, I will be sure to report it all!
My friend, Steve, is very unhapy with me. He feels that, since he can't be bothered to make up a blog for himself, it's my responsibility to post his news. So without further ado, here's what's going on with Steve the last few months:
On The Simpsons the other week, Apu, the Indian convenience store clerk decided to leave the country and change his identity. "Apu? Who's Apu? My name is Steve Barnes," Apu is quoted as saying in the episode after donning a blond wig and glasses. It was quite funny and I'll post a clip of it when I get around to doing so.
Steve bought a car on Ebay around 6 months ago or so. It was a 1977 ChryslerTown and Country station wagon. He bought it for a few thousand and paid to have it shipped to NY from California. He has since dumped several more thousands into it to get it running well. It's a beautiful machine and I can't wait to see it completely renovated.
Last month he decided to surprise his wife with another Ebay special; this time, a 1977 Chevy Nova. "Stick with what ya know!" he tells me. The car was in Jersey and Steve was going to spend 7 hours and take trains and buses to get there to pick it up. I honorably offered to drive him. It would be like a mini-road trip. We scheduled it for Thursday. Wednesday night, I came home from work feeling dopey and tired. It got worse and worse and it became clear that I was miserably sick. I spent the night shivering and sweating in the basement. I woke up on Thursday and called in sick from work. As the day progressed, I began to feel better. By late afternoon, I felt I was well enough to help Steve out and called to tell him so. He picked me up and away we went, but not before showing off his new walkie talkies! He put one in the kitchen and took the other to the bathroom to prove that they worked. Swell. Steve paid for my coffee and for all tolls (with a second EZ pass) and we arrived in Jersey around 7:30ish. The transaction completed, we took seperate cars home, walkie-talkieing the whole way home. We stopped at a deserted rest stop for burgers. Steve dropped the Nova off at his mechanics' and I took him back to my house, where he picked up his old car and went home. Wow! What a crazy trip.
Recently, Steve was a guest on Money Talk on WLIE 540am that aired on Saturday November 11, 2004 at 10am and lasted until 10:30am. He discussed year end tax planning for individuals. I will get a clip of this as well, but I missed the actual broadcast by one hour.
As more of my friends' news comes up, I will be sure to report it all!
Friday, December 10, 2004
MOVIES!
I know it's been a while since I've posted, but I think I'm back now. There's a lot of ground to cover, so let's get started. I'll begin with movies.
I finally got to see The Incredibles. I got scared that I might miss a Pixar film in the theaters, but I made it! I was originally scared by this movie because it's the first Pixar film to get a PG rating, and it's directed by Brad Bird, who, while I admire him greatly for his fabulous film from 1999, The Iron Giant, is not a Pixar stable director. (Side note: that may be the longest sentence I've ever written!) I've always felt proud of Pixar. I was familiar with their work back in the late 80's. They pushed the bounderies of computer animation with short films before Toy Story in 1995. I've always felt a little protective of them. Like, when you discover a band and then they become popular and you watch them suspiciously for the slightest screwup? Pixar has never disappointed me. I watched in awe as these "children's" movies were infused with real emotion and loving artisitic care. To be honest, it wasn't until my son started to watch them over and over again that I thought of them as movies for kids.
Anyway, did I mention I saw The Incredibles? I did? Oh...well, it was really really good! The trailers were all for animated pieces of crap and Star Wars 3. Star Wars 3 looks like it might be only slightly gag-worthy. I reserve judgement. Pixar traditionally opens with a short cartoon. In the past, the short films have been ways of experimenting with new technologies that are used in future films, like water or hair, or realistic human expressions. Boundin' was pretty lame. It wasn't actually BAD, but it slid right off my brain. It felt completely uninspired. The actual movie, however, was gorgeously rendered and well acted. The hair animation was eye-popping! The complete creation of this world was done to absolute perfection. I didn't feel like they were TRYING to make this a PG movie. The story just called for a little more action violence than, say, Finding Nemo (which features a mother dying, by the way). But the story was just so wonderful and classic. I could easily spawn a TV series or a slew of sequels, but I hope like hell they do NOT do with The Incredibles what they did with Buzz Lightyear, i.e. create a really really bad cartoon series. I kept hearing that this was a mature movie and had a lot of depth to it. Let's not get nuts, here. It was really good and had some light metaphors, but it was simply a really well made movie. In these times, that is considered something astounding. How sad.
In other news, I finally saw the poster and the trailer for Tim Burton and Johnny Depp's remake of CHARLIE (WILLY WONKA) AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY. This is cause for much celebration with a healthy amount of skepticism. The original was pretty much perfect. Why remake it? Well, the trailer got me very excited. Check it out HERE
Also, the movie is finally being made for THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY! Brief history: It was a radio show in England. Then it was made into a record. Then a book and then a British TV show and it spawned 6 sequels. It's about a man from Earth who travels through time and space and it's really funny (well, the first 2 books are). Anyway, the trailer is now on the web, along with lots of updates on the production! Like Lord of the Rings before them, the Hitchhiker's directors are well aware that there is a rabid fanbase for these books and will tear the film to shreds if they get it wrong. From what I've seen so far, they haven't gotten ANYTHING wrong! It's not what I envisioned, exactly, but DAMN does it look good! Click the logo for the website.
I know it's been a while since I've posted, but I think I'm back now. There's a lot of ground to cover, so let's get started. I'll begin with movies.
I finally got to see The Incredibles. I got scared that I might miss a Pixar film in the theaters, but I made it! I was originally scared by this movie because it's the first Pixar film to get a PG rating, and it's directed by Brad Bird, who, while I admire him greatly for his fabulous film from 1999, The Iron Giant, is not a Pixar stable director. (Side note: that may be the longest sentence I've ever written!) I've always felt proud of Pixar. I was familiar with their work back in the late 80's. They pushed the bounderies of computer animation with short films before Toy Story in 1995. I've always felt a little protective of them. Like, when you discover a band and then they become popular and you watch them suspiciously for the slightest screwup? Pixar has never disappointed me. I watched in awe as these "children's" movies were infused with real emotion and loving artisitic care. To be honest, it wasn't until my son started to watch them over and over again that I thought of them as movies for kids.
Anyway, did I mention I saw The Incredibles? I did? Oh...well, it was really really good! The trailers were all for animated pieces of crap and Star Wars 3. Star Wars 3 looks like it might be only slightly gag-worthy. I reserve judgement. Pixar traditionally opens with a short cartoon. In the past, the short films have been ways of experimenting with new technologies that are used in future films, like water or hair, or realistic human expressions. Boundin' was pretty lame. It wasn't actually BAD, but it slid right off my brain. It felt completely uninspired. The actual movie, however, was gorgeously rendered and well acted. The hair animation was eye-popping! The complete creation of this world was done to absolute perfection. I didn't feel like they were TRYING to make this a PG movie. The story just called for a little more action violence than, say, Finding Nemo (which features a mother dying, by the way). But the story was just so wonderful and classic. I could easily spawn a TV series or a slew of sequels, but I hope like hell they do NOT do with The Incredibles what they did with Buzz Lightyear, i.e. create a really really bad cartoon series. I kept hearing that this was a mature movie and had a lot of depth to it. Let's not get nuts, here. It was really good and had some light metaphors, but it was simply a really well made movie. In these times, that is considered something astounding. How sad.
In other news, I finally saw the poster and the trailer for Tim Burton and Johnny Depp's remake of CHARLIE (WILLY WONKA) AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY. This is cause for much celebration with a healthy amount of skepticism. The original was pretty much perfect. Why remake it? Well, the trailer got me very excited. Check it out HERE
Also, the movie is finally being made for THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY! Brief history: It was a radio show in England. Then it was made into a record. Then a book and then a British TV show and it spawned 6 sequels. It's about a man from Earth who travels through time and space and it's really funny (well, the first 2 books are). Anyway, the trailer is now on the web, along with lots of updates on the production! Like Lord of the Rings before them, the Hitchhiker's directors are well aware that there is a rabid fanbase for these books and will tear the film to shreds if they get it wrong. From what I've seen so far, they haven't gotten ANYTHING wrong! It's not what I envisioned, exactly, but DAMN does it look good! Click the logo for the website.
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