Saturday, June 27, 2009
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Summer Programming
Sorry about the complete disappearance, folks. Things got hectic in April and May. What can I say? Now I hope to be back and on schedule. That said, I don't plan to post every week on the same day. I'll post when I have three things to comment on. (Hopefully that will be once a week but who knows.) Also, as many of you know, I finally gave in to peer pressure and created a Facebook account. I enjoy it a lot more than I expected to. If you've got the time, it's awfully fun!
Film: The Evil Dead
I watched the first of Sam Raimi's Evil Dead trilogy last week and the second last night. (Army of Darkness is on its way.) I love them both for different reasons. The first Evil Dead film has several scary moments. Raimi's eye for cinematography is excellent; it's what makes The Quick and the Dead such a beautiful film. (Well, that and Russell Crowe.) The creepiest moment by far is when Ash's possessed girlfriend sits in the doorway cackling crazily. The effects - especially at the end - are cheesy and over-the-top, but the editing and cinematography are delightful.
Television: Picket Fences
I've been rewatching this show from the early 90s. I remember it with loving nostalgia and I am glad to see that the nostalgia is not completely unfounded. Ray Walston still shines as the cranky judge and Holly Marie Combs is still the show's moral center. Kathy Baker gets a little heavy-handed but it was the early 90s and working mothers still hadn't found their niche in prime time drama. (I'm not sure they have found that niche yet, but that's a conversation for another day.) The shows are timely for the time period but so far every one has a moral lesson: euthanasia, animal cruelty, teen sex, transsexuals. Despite the typical problems of dramas from that time period, I am very much enjoying my walk down memory lane.
Book: Alias Grace
Margaret Atwood's historical fiction novel is an amazing read, even if you don't like historical fiction. The story centers on the 19th-century murderess Grace Marks as she tells her story to Simon, a psychoanalyst, of sorts. More questions than answers are raised by the end of the book so I don't want to give anything away. What I will tell you is that you'll be surprised by several moments in the novel. Will you sympathize with Grace when her story has been told?
Film: The Evil Dead
I watched the first of Sam Raimi's Evil Dead trilogy last week and the second last night. (Army of Darkness is on its way.) I love them both for different reasons. The first Evil Dead film has several scary moments. Raimi's eye for cinematography is excellent; it's what makes The Quick and the Dead such a beautiful film. (Well, that and Russell Crowe.) The creepiest moment by far is when Ash's possessed girlfriend sits in the doorway cackling crazily. The effects - especially at the end - are cheesy and over-the-top, but the editing and cinematography are delightful.
Television: Picket Fences
I've been rewatching this show from the early 90s. I remember it with loving nostalgia and I am glad to see that the nostalgia is not completely unfounded. Ray Walston still shines as the cranky judge and Holly Marie Combs is still the show's moral center. Kathy Baker gets a little heavy-handed but it was the early 90s and working mothers still hadn't found their niche in prime time drama. (I'm not sure they have found that niche yet, but that's a conversation for another day.) The shows are timely for the time period but so far every one has a moral lesson: euthanasia, animal cruelty, teen sex, transsexuals. Despite the typical problems of dramas from that time period, I am very much enjoying my walk down memory lane.
Book: Alias Grace
Margaret Atwood's historical fiction novel is an amazing read, even if you don't like historical fiction. The story centers on the 19th-century murderess Grace Marks as she tells her story to Simon, a psychoanalyst, of sorts. More questions than answers are raised by the end of the book so I don't want to give anything away. What I will tell you is that you'll be surprised by several moments in the novel. Will you sympathize with Grace when her story has been told?
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