In my opinion, "District 9" is not a great movie, but let me clarify what I mean by that. A movie with a premise that clever and innovative can go one of two ways when it is forced to introduce a plot into its universe: it can rise to the occasion and execute well enough to keep the momentum alive or it can be dragged down by the artificial introduction. Movies that are all-time great, execute with precision and don't feel forced. You allow yourself to forget you are watching a movie and get lost in the action, suspending your disbelief. You can allow yourself to feel emotionally attached to the characters and their destinies.
The ones that fail ride well-worn trails of cliches, Hollywood schlock, and contain cheesy, gimmicky plots that insult your intelligence. Style over substance. We've all seen Michael Bay's sorry excuse for character development and movies that never had a real concept in the first place. "District 9" is by no means a failure, it's a very good movie, but it sputters and ultimately fails to deliver on its promise. I felt there was no momentum left by the end.
WARNING SPOILERS BELOW: you may want to stop reading if you haven't seen the film
I loved the first 30 minutes. Loved them. The documentary style, the Office-like humor, the incredible detail and seamless special effects, visually stunning but understated. The set-up was perfect and the commentary was evident without overwhelming. Then the plot hit. In and of itself, Wikus turning into an alien wasn't necessarily a bad idea; however, the way it came to fruition was. Blomkamp himself said in an interview he tried to pander to a popcorn level to avoid being too serious. Instead of creating what could have been all-time great, he settled for well-worn action cliches.
There are directors who can get away with applying a formula without getting called on it. Spike Lee comes to mind. In Blomkamp's first picture, he shows promise but is not quite deft enough to completely pull it off. I think I've seen the oppressor-gets-alienated-by-his-kind-and-teams-up-with-one-of-the-oppressed plotline about 100 times. I'm sure this isn't true, yet I feel like I have heard the exact line Wikus utters when he stays to fight the bad guys, heroically knowing he will probably die. I thought the "Training Day" ending was OK, but we can hardly call it original. The metamorphosis is straight from "The Fly." It's hard not to draw comparisons to "Robocop", "Aliens", "Alien Nation", and basically every other science fiction film you've ever seen. When he's making the flower for his wife as a full-on Prawn, I felt sick to my stomach.
Furthermore, the commentary didn't quite work when it became an incoherent rant against multinational corporations (the preeminent generic sci-fi cliche, as Slate can tell you better than I: http://www.slate.com/id/2225285/). Where was the documentary aspect after about 30 minutes? If only both halves were of similar quality. Frankly, the 6 minute "Alive in Joburg" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlgtbEdqVsk) it's based on is better. With alien interviews where they're pleading for necessities and gritty news footage, it does more in 6 minutes to effectively illustrate the allegory to apartheid than the feature film did in 2 hours. It evokes more feeling too. If you want to see an amazing movie where monsters bring out the monsters in men, watch "The Host." Amazing movie.
Anyway, where does District 9 stand in the halls of science fiction? I'm going to make an informal list with Rotten Tomato Tomatometer %. Rotten Tomatoes tracks the % of critics that would recommend seeing the movie, thumbs up or down. Please note that I'm doing modern era, so I'm not putting "Metropolis", "The Day the Earth Stood Still", or anything like that. I'm also excluding comic book movies (not graphic novels) and comedies like "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" or "Ghostbusters." Straight sci-fi. I will also admit I haven't seen any other "Star Trek" movies, "Serenity", or "District B13". I am exempting animation because I know virtually nothing about it.
All-Time Greats:
2001 (96%)
Alien, Aliens (97%, 100%)
A Clockwork Orange (91%)
Terminator, T2 (100%, 97%)
Star Wars (93%,) <-- I'm only putting one, so deal with it.
The Matrix (86%)
Blade Runner (94%)
Brazil (98%)
ET (98%)
Still Great, But Clearly Tier II:
Solaris (98%)
Road Warrior (100%)
Minority Report (91%)
The Host (92%)
Children of Men (92%)
Gattaca (78%)
The Fly (91%)
WALL-E (96%)
Tier III:
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (95%)
Planet of the Apes (88%)
Twelve Monkeys (85%)
The Abyss (84%)
Donnie Darko (91%)
Sunshine (75%)
Scanner Darkly (67%)
The Thing (77%)
The Fountain (51%)--> I love this movie, I don't care if it got mixed responses. It's moving and beautiful, gets me every time. Total success, sometimes obscurity can be rewarding.
The Best of the Action Packed, Not Too Serious Flicks
Robocop (88%)
District 9 (89%)
Total Recall (79%)
Escape from New York (81%)
Predator (76%)
Fifth Element (70%)
Highly Flawed, but Strove for Greatness:
AI (73%)
Dark City (77%)
Matrix Reloaded (76%)
Pretty Good, but Don't Quite Deliver on Premise:
Star Trek (2009) (95%)
V for Vendetta (73%)
Cloverfield (77%)
I Am Legend (69%)
War of the Worlds (73%)
Dumber Action Films:
Starship Troopers (60%)
Independence Day (62%)
I, Robot (58%)
Event Horizon (21%)
Equilibrium (36%)
Total Failures:
Alien 3 (34%)
Stargate (43%)
Armageddon (41%)
Matrix Revolutions (37%)
The Island (40%)
Godzilla (2000) (26%)
Doom (20%)
Alien vs. Predator (22%)
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Friday, August 7, 2009
Today Was a Good Day Extended Version
Old news I know, but in case people haven't seen it, here's the extended version of the Nike SB commercial. The Kobester makes an appearance.
Aphorisms
-If you read one thing today, please let it be this article on health care from the Harvard Business Review. A few gems:
"Americans spend more on products, and receive less services. Americans realize amongst the poorest health outcomes of developed nations. Americans have the lowest life expectancy amongst developed nations — 78.1 years, compared to 81 in the UK, and 82 in Switzerland. Lower levels of service and more money spent on the same drugs, translate, as you might reasonably expect, into poorer outcomes."
"Healthcare in America is a textbook example of thin value. The healthcare industry maintains significantly supernormal profitability — yet, those profits are divorced from people being relatively better off. An American healthcare industry that "creates value" by limiting how much better off people are is simply transferring value from society to shareholders."
The disincentives within health care are unbelievable. These insurance providers are publicly traded entities that must constantly compete with one another for best in class payout metrics and push higher and higher margins at the expense of care. Finding technicalities to avoid payment and cleansing unprofitable accounts is different when it's human lives at stake. We won't fix health care until we make care the primary goal of insurers, not shareholder return. I've heard it before from a friend, but I believe non-profit insurance entities are the close thing to a "solution" that I've heard.
-I like to believe that my efforts sending Lamar Odom articles with reasons to join the Lakers on twitter and my blog post on this humble establishment helped lobby him to LA. That and the Lakers offered more money, home, and a chance to win another championship. I believe he had serious consideration for Miami and I have to say D-Wade was able to scare me, but I think Lamar Odom belongs in LA. I'm very very excited about the NBA season this year.
-The Lakers are the clear favorite to win the championship. If Artest buys in and steps up his defense, we're going to be very very scary. Assuming Bynum is able to regain some of the form he's shown in flashes and stays healthy, hoping that Farmar/Brown take the quantum leap (3rd year for Mr. Farmar I believe), and seeing Sasha Vujacic actually shoot the ball and we're talking about a potentially dominant team. Just like last year when I was so frustrated with this 65 win club (how is that even possible) because they only scratched the surface of their potential so often with their lackadaisical commitment to defense and inability to care as much as teams need to be great. But I have to give it to them: they flipped a switch during that Nuggets series and developed another gear against Orlando. No one in the NBA could have beaten us in that series.
Before the championship, you would say the Lakers had three mortal weaknesses on defense: fast point guards, three point shooting and spacing the floor, and pick and roll defense. Orlando exploited all three of these Achilles' heels in the regular season, crushing the Lakers. In the Finals, the Lakers had amazing weak-side help defense on Dwight but rotated fast enough to prevent open threes, shut down Alston and Nelson for much of the series, and defended the pick and roll like men possessed. They lived up to their potential. Phil Jackson outcoached Van Gundy-never underestimate the importance of this after he was outcoached by Brown and Thibodeau. Notice I didn't say Rivers. Lamar Odom played consistently. Kobe was Kobe. Role players stepped up. If this team carries that hunger, if Kobe is able to inspire them like Michael did the Bulls in '96, we could see something really special. The Lakers have a potentially all-time great offense this year, but if they really commit on D, they could be unstoppable.
-The disparity between the have's and have nots in the NBA is unbelievable, but I think the long-time rivalries like the Lakers and the Celtics in the 80's and eras with superpowers are better sometimes. The NFL has amazing parity and that does some great things, but I think the rise of the evil Patriots empire is one of the best things to ever happen to the league. The Giants toppling that Leviathan in such dramatic fashion is surely more unbelievable than a random team from the AFC like the Jaguars in their first Superbowl. When Eli Manning stopped a 18-0 Juggernaut on the verge of adding to its dynasty, it became unbelievable. When David topples Goliath, when Jordan beats the Showtime Lakers...
-I think I'm going to get NBA league pass and write a lot more during the season. These are real goals people.
-Do yourself a favor and watch this music video promoting the new Nike Hyperize sneakers. Durantula, AI, Rashard, and Mo Williams all exceed expectations and I actually like the song.
-For someone who expends so much energy dismissing metaphysics, I subconciously hold things to such incredible standards. Recognizing the imperfections in people and institutions and accepting them is critical to life.
-I'm a different person than I was at the end of 2008. I've matured a lot in my outlook. Growth happens in concentrated spurts and the last few months will be among my most memorable for a lot of reasons. I finally "got it" in a lot of ways.
-Part of that outlook is recognizing that it's time for a step-change in life. I feel it coming. Yes, it's jargon, but weirdly appropriate. I've spent too much time thinking about strategic frameworks. Too much time.
-I made an unbelievably cathartic playlist on iTunes today. Called it "Show Me the Good Life" after the Blu & Exile song. That Blu & Exile album is unbelievable, have been bumping it non-stop for a week.
-The playlist is almost entirely hip-hop but contains one indie rock song, Matt & Kim "Lessons Learned." For seem reason it seems oddly appropriate. The hip-hop is a has a bunch of contemplative songs like "Staring Through My Rear View", "Moment of Clarity", etc. It also has a number of songs about victory and celebration, like "Good Life", "Back in the Day", and "Encore." Ups an downs I suppose.
.
-There's a lot I want to accomplish in the next few months. I need to take the GMAT, apply to b-school, and establish a better routine. I've realized that you are what you do every day and must create the habits that make you the person that you want to become. This has a lot of implications. I need to read more booksI digest a lot of information, but less books than I want to. I want to establish a better gym routine, which get disrupted too often with so much travel.
-Watched "White Men Can't Jump" over 4-5 nights as I was falling asleep. Awesome movie. I mean obviously no Oscar contender, but pretty creative comedy with some decent basketball thrown in there. I laughed quite a bit. I like Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson and both are pretty funny and charismatic here. Woody Harrelson is more believably good at basketball than I expected too. Plus, those 90's outfits were straight nostalgia. Not to mention awesome. The beach volleyball hat!
"Americans spend more on products, and receive less services. Americans realize amongst the poorest health outcomes of developed nations. Americans have the lowest life expectancy amongst developed nations — 78.1 years, compared to 81 in the UK, and 82 in Switzerland. Lower levels of service and more money spent on the same drugs, translate, as you might reasonably expect, into poorer outcomes."
"Healthcare in America is a textbook example of thin value. The healthcare industry maintains significantly supernormal profitability — yet, those profits are divorced from people being relatively better off. An American healthcare industry that "creates value" by limiting how much better off people are is simply transferring value from society to shareholders."
The disincentives within health care are unbelievable. These insurance providers are publicly traded entities that must constantly compete with one another for best in class payout metrics and push higher and higher margins at the expense of care. Finding technicalities to avoid payment and cleansing unprofitable accounts is different when it's human lives at stake. We won't fix health care until we make care the primary goal of insurers, not shareholder return. I've heard it before from a friend, but I believe non-profit insurance entities are the close thing to a "solution" that I've heard.
-I like to believe that my efforts sending Lamar Odom articles with reasons to join the Lakers on twitter and my blog post on this humble establishment helped lobby him to LA. That and the Lakers offered more money, home, and a chance to win another championship. I believe he had serious consideration for Miami and I have to say D-Wade was able to scare me, but I think Lamar Odom belongs in LA. I'm very very excited about the NBA season this year.-The Lakers are the clear favorite to win the championship. If Artest buys in and steps up his defense, we're going to be very very scary. Assuming Bynum is able to regain some of the form he's shown in flashes and stays healthy, hoping that Farmar/Brown take the quantum leap (3rd year for Mr. Farmar I believe), and seeing Sasha Vujacic actually shoot the ball and we're talking about a potentially dominant team. Just like last year when I was so frustrated with this 65 win club (how is that even possible) because they only scratched the surface of their potential so often with their lackadaisical commitment to defense and inability to care as much as teams need to be great. But I have to give it to them: they flipped a switch during that Nuggets series and developed another gear against Orlando. No one in the NBA could have beaten us in that series.
Before the championship, you would say the Lakers had three mortal weaknesses on defense: fast point guards, three point shooting and spacing the floor, and pick and roll defense. Orlando exploited all three of these Achilles' heels in the regular season, crushing the Lakers. In the Finals, the Lakers had amazing weak-side help defense on Dwight but rotated fast enough to prevent open threes, shut down Alston and Nelson for much of the series, and defended the pick and roll like men possessed. They lived up to their potential. Phil Jackson outcoached Van Gundy-never underestimate the importance of this after he was outcoached by Brown and Thibodeau. Notice I didn't say Rivers. Lamar Odom played consistently. Kobe was Kobe. Role players stepped up. If this team carries that hunger, if Kobe is able to inspire them like Michael did the Bulls in '96, we could see something really special. The Lakers have a potentially all-time great offense this year, but if they really commit on D, they could be unstoppable.
-The disparity between the have's and have nots in the NBA is unbelievable, but I think the long-time rivalries like the Lakers and the Celtics in the 80's and eras with superpowers are better sometimes. The NFL has amazing parity and that does some great things, but I think the rise of the evil Patriots empire is one of the best things to ever happen to the league. The Giants toppling that Leviathan in such dramatic fashion is surely more unbelievable than a random team from the AFC like the Jaguars in their first Superbowl. When Eli Manning stopped a 18-0 Juggernaut on the verge of adding to its dynasty, it became unbelievable. When David topples Goliath, when Jordan beats the Showtime Lakers...-I think I'm going to get NBA league pass and write a lot more during the season. These are real goals people.
-Do yourself a favor and watch this music video promoting the new Nike Hyperize sneakers. Durantula, AI, Rashard, and Mo Williams all exceed expectations and I actually like the song.
-For someone who expends so much energy dismissing metaphysics, I subconciously hold things to such incredible standards. Recognizing the imperfections in people and institutions and accepting them is critical to life.
-I'm a different person than I was at the end of 2008. I've matured a lot in my outlook. Growth happens in concentrated spurts and the last few months will be among my most memorable for a lot of reasons. I finally "got it" in a lot of ways.
-Part of that outlook is recognizing that it's time for a step-change in life. I feel it coming. Yes, it's jargon, but weirdly appropriate. I've spent too much time thinking about strategic frameworks. Too much time.
-I made an unbelievably cathartic playlist on iTunes today. Called it "Show Me the Good Life" after the Blu & Exile song. That Blu & Exile album is unbelievable, have been bumping it non-stop for a week.
-The playlist is almost entirely hip-hop but contains one indie rock song, Matt & Kim "Lessons Learned." For seem reason it seems oddly appropriate. The hip-hop is a has a bunch of contemplative songs like "Staring Through My Rear View", "Moment of Clarity", etc. It also has a number of songs about victory and celebration, like "Good Life", "Back in the Day", and "Encore." Ups an downs I suppose.
.
-There's a lot I want to accomplish in the next few months. I need to take the GMAT, apply to b-school, and establish a better routine. I've realized that you are what you do every day and must create the habits that make you the person that you want to become. This has a lot of implications. I need to read more booksI digest a lot of information, but less books than I want to. I want to establish a better gym routine, which get disrupted too often with so much travel.
-Watched "White Men Can't Jump" over 4-5 nights as I was falling asleep. Awesome movie. I mean obviously no Oscar contender, but pretty creative comedy with some decent basketball thrown in there. I laughed quite a bit. I like Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson and both are pretty funny and charismatic here. Woody Harrelson is more believably good at basketball than I expected too. Plus, those 90's outfits were straight nostalgia. Not to mention awesome. The beach volleyball hat!
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
LeBron James: Old School Figure or New Media Failure?
We're living an age of unprecedented access to celebrities. With the advent of Twitter, we are exposed to their thoughts, unfiltered and without a PR representative in the middle. The NBA has arguably been the community to embrace Twitter the most rapidly, with much of the league getting involved by following Shaq's example and interacting with fans and journalists alike. We've seen Kevin Love break news of his coach's firing, Shaquille O'Neal give away tickets online, a race to 50,000 between Chris Bosh and Charlie Villanueva (a really really irritating race if you follow Bosh), and folks like Dwight Howard build up a following by providing unfettered access to their stream of consciousness.
LeBron James, however, has not followed the path of his peers like D. Wade and has yet to really utilize the kind of proximity that social media can provide him to his fans. This really should not surprise us though, since he has entered the league he has obsessively controlled his image and thus his marketability to sponsors. The difference between LeBron James and most NBA players, even those taken from high school, is that his NBA status has been extremely obvious since early high school at the latest. He was King James by the time he came into the league and his junior year he graced the Sports Illustrated cover in an article where GM's insisted they'd trade anything for him at that point. The dude has had plenty of time to prepare his image and you better believe he's been thoughtful about how he's perceived from the get-go.
James has surrounded himself with high school friends who have ultimately ended up being yes men. He has a great relationship with Jay-Z, who is one of the more secretive rappers about his personal life. Where Kobe and MJ had one singular goal in their lives: to win, LBJ's main goal is to be a billionaire. Even winning is secondary for him. In terms of media presence, I feel he's more Machiavellian and less trustworthy than Kobe. His appearances are more obviously calculated and low risk. The most I've ever read about his personal interactions has been with sponsors. Even Kobe's teammates, like Smush Parker and Derek Fisher, have been in the press with things to say about the Black Mamba, good or bad. I've never heard anyone say anything either way about LeBron as a teammate or a human being. But we sure know a lot about LeBron James the marketing gimmick.
It's interesting to watch this strategy backfire because LeBron James has a very good on-court persona, but we don't know enough about him personally to put his off-court mistakes in context. Clearly he's very competitive, but it's hard to place where he lies on that continuum. After Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals, LeBron stomped out of the arena without shaking hands. Later, he justified his behavior because he didn't want to shake hands after a loss. LeBron the sore loser, eh? Not only did he spark a media firestorm, he also started a whole new round of LeBron to NYC in 2010 rumors by wearing a Yankees hat in his interviews where he defended himself. Very subtle, LeBron.
More recently, LeBron confiscated videotape of him being "posterized" at his camp by Jordan Crawford, a sophomore at Xavier. After the dunk, he whispered in the ear of the Nike representatives, who literally stole the videotapes from the cameras to protect their investment. Of course, the story got out and people hated on LeBron for it. Why wouldn't we? Getting posterized, to an intelligent basketball fan, is usually not a shame. It means you're rotating and covering a man at the last second and get caught. It means you're putting your body in the line of duty to draw a charge. It means you're trying on defense. Anyways, the longer we waited to see even a Zapruder version of this tape, the more our imaginations went wild. Blogs posted pictures of VC over Frederic Weis in anticipation when TMZ declared it would release the video yesterday.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
A Plea for Lamar Odom
I don't write about sports nearly enough on here, even with my Lakers winning a championship! I figure that I read more sports writing than any human being should (you don't even want to see my Google Reader) and if it's a pretty big passion of mine, I should start writing about it more. That and I'm still debating if I can plausibly write a Lakers season review with grades without it being too late. I have plenty of time for that though, seeing as we're surviving in sports purgatory with only the MLB and Tour De France these days, and I'll think of something when I watch that glorious season recap DVD I haven't gotten around to buying yet...
Anyways, I've been talking a lot about Lamar Odom with anyone who will listen. Perhaps ranting is a better word. Obsessing. I've never wanted a free agent to re-sign like this before. Look, I'm a big Dodgers fan and freaked out about Manny last year, but Manny didn't just help us win a championship. He's still a rental anyway. Come to think of it, there's no one who's come even close.
As a Lakers fan, I'm used to winning that free agent battle. LA is a destination, you're a star baby. Sure, we've lost some battles, but we win the big ones. We got Shaq from Orlando. Kobe was never going to leave in 2004. In my entire life, I can't remember being devastated the way I imagine T'wolves fans were when KG got traded (well, maybe McHale waited long enough that that wasn't true) or the way those Magic fans felt when the Big Buckeye abandoned ship with what seemed like several championships waiting in the wings.
It's not just about that though. I could handle losing Gasol better than this, really I could. Lamar isn't just a Laker, he's probably my favorite Laker. I remember the first time I ever really watched LO, on the 2004 Olympic team, ironically not too long before he was traded to LA. I knew who he was but I didn't know him outside of his Clipper-hood and drug busts. I remember being so impressed with LO doing everything for that team, one of those who never quit, playing impromptu center and blocking shot after shot as his teammates allowed one fast break after another. LO was the goalie and kept going until he was literally wagging his tongue, exhausted. That image of Lamar Odom, the versatile talent shamelessly doing whatever needed to be done for a flawed team, endured until this year's title.
It's easy to speak in superlatives about Lamar Odom, on the court and off the court. You'd be hard-pressed to find anyone in the L who's had a tougher childhood or has a better attitude about it now. He smiles like Magic Johnson and has a lot of joy in his life. You can see it on the court and you can only laugh along with him when he does things like eat candy for breakfast. Of course Lamar Odom is the candyman!
On the court, he's been whatever the Lakers have needed him for. He learned to be a great PF and defended bigs like Tim Duncan and Garnett when no one else stepped up. He can do EVERYTHING imaginable at 6'10". He can run the court, pass, shoot (apparently, 3's now too), rebound, block shots, toss in a baby hook, you name it. Now that we have bigs and have relegated him to 6th man, he's simply turned into a premier help defender and is a policeman for that childish second unit and turning the Lakers bench into the league's finest. How'd they look when Lamar was starting and Josh Powell was out there?
In retrospect, he's an obvious choice for my favorite Laker. You have to love Kobe aesthetically and because of his skill, but he's a stone cold assassin and a jerk sometimes, even though I believe he's grown up a lot. He's too Machiavellian a figure for you to ever buy his sincerity that much. I like Pau, don't get me wrong, but he's too goofy and hasn't been around long enough. Bynum is super-frustrating. I understand why people on OTHER teams hate Sasha sometimes. D-Fish is the man, but his 15 foot pull-up jumpers automatically remove him from contention. Who doesn't love Mbenga but come on...
Lamar is the most human and relatable player on the roster. He's an emotional open book and I've shared the ride, the ups and downs, on his expressions over the years. When the Shaq trade wasn't really working out, I always blamed Caron and never LO. I've stuck with him since he came to the Lakers and my attachment to him has grown over the years as I've watched him mature and learn to control his dazzling array of talents. He's been as frustrating as he's been electric the last few years. I can't tell you how many times I've been dripping sweat as he takes an ill-advised shot or free throws at the end of a game. He's been inconsistent as a second banana, there's no other way to say it.
I defended his performance in the 2008 Finals, he put up 20/11/4 and 19/10/4 in games 4 and 5 people, and have defended his tenure as a Laker ("All-Star numbers until he got hurt") in ways I've never defended Kobe. I'm obliged to defend Kobe, but for the most part any defense of Kobe starts with a some serious concessions and caveats anyway.
There were a lot of redemption stories on that championship team. Phil got his 10th, Kupchak did it, Kobe did it without Shaq, Euros like Gasol are winners, Derek Fisher wasn't done yet, etc. But the one that meant the most to me was Lamar Odom's redemption. He went from a flawed sidekick that was never quite going to be Kobe's Pippen to a human Swiss army knife who sublimated his role to win. When held up to the standard of his talent, he was always a failure, but winning a championship as a vital and clutch player of critical importance, that's the stuff of legend. He's a star here forever.
I understand why he'd leave if he was making more money. At this point, the sentiments of the Heat still may win him over, but he shouldn't leave for less and a worse basketball situation. I get that he doesn't feel appreciated; the NBA is a business, but it's an intensely personal one. The number one priority is respect and the Lakers aren't exactly oozing it. He's still the only Laker not getting paid, but no one else can pay more, so he has little leverage unfortunately. It's not just about the front office. The fans love Lamar and he has a real home here in the community. The Lakers are still his best chance of winning. Winning a lot and paying more. The Heat are still probably a 48-49 win team at best if they do some fancy maneuvering with Jermaine O'Neal's expiring contract, but the Lakers could be a dynasty. That's not happening in South Beach. Wade's probably out in 2010 anyway.
But Lamar, this isn't just about winning and the title you have to defend. This is about where you belong, in the offense where your basketball skills are divine. This is your team and your place in the universe. Yeah, Kobe is no doubt the leader of this team, but you are its heart, its compass. Kobe is always fantastic, but the Lakers live and die by Lamar Odom. The kids look up to him and the veterans respect him. We'll work on a star in Hollywood for you Lamar, but please get to work on another Larry O'Brien trophy marching down Figueroa. It wouldn't be the same without you.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
"500 Days of Summer" and "Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father"
Wow. Coincidentally, I have been treated to two absolute tour de forces in two days and both have managed to knock me out with their raw emotional power. These films, "500 Days of Summer" and "Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father," speak to the power of human emotion and the way that life doesn't always work out the way we want it to.
"500 Days of Summer"
"500 Days of Summer" was a fantastic film. It's a wonderfully shot story of a relationship, 500 days of Tom (Joseph Gordon Levitt) and Summer (Zoey Deschanel). Another film that is hard to do justice to, "Summer" would technically be classified as a romantic comedy, but it's really a movie about the little things and the emotional intimacies of a relationship. Tom and Summer don't make it, I'm afraid, and it's something we know from the very beginning, which makes the story have a certain gravitas as it unfolds, with us looking for little details and hints of how it ends along the way.
"Summer" is the story of Tom, a greeting card writer, who meets Summer when she starts as an assistant at his work. They connect over The Smiths on the elevator and have a brief courtship highlighted by an amazing work function at a karaoke bar. The music has been carefully chosen and is a defining element of the film, helping set the tone and convey its meaning. The film is non-linear and jumps back and forth between the different stages of the relationship, from the courtship to the inevitable end.
This is director Mark Webb's first feature film, having come from a background in music videos, and he has an incredible eye for beauty in his cinematography. He has slick transitions between moments, split screens, and creative innovations in story-telling combined with a real understanding of the human heart. "Summer" manages to weave an engaging and gorgeous around this failed relationship. Summer was never going to marry Tom and sometimes life doesn't work out like the way we want it to. This is a hard lesson for Tom and we really feel his pain, but we also feel the joy along the ride and really come to understand why he loves her. Levitt and Deschanel are both incredible in their roles, which serves to elevate the film even further. This one will require multiple viewings to catch all of the intricacies. I can't wait.
Grade: A-
"Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father"
Simply put, this movie destroyed me and left me emotionally raw in a way that only a few movies ever have. It is on the short-list for most devastating picture I've ever experienced and that's saying a lot, trust me. When I reflect, I've only been affected to the point of tears a few times in my life: "I Am Sam", "Requiem for a Dream", "American History X", "United 93", and now "Dear Zachary." Of the bunch, "Zachary" and "United 93" had the biggest visceral impact, perhaps because of the power that the truth of the story provides their narrative. I know that "Requiem for a Dream" didn't happen, as attached as I am to the characters, and there's something to be said for the credibility that a true story or a documentary attaches to the emotional impact.
"Zachary" is the story of Andrew Bagby, who was murdered by his pregnant girlfriend, as told by the director Kurt Kuenne, who is a child-hood friend that made many an amateur film with Andrew growing up. Zachary is Andrew's son and Kurt wants him to know his father. He has some incredible footage and photographs to work with here, but that's not where he shines. Kurt tirelessly travels the country to interview those that knew and loved Andrew. He interviews extended family, classmates, co-workers, and, most extensively, his parents.
Andrew seems like he was an incredible kid, a best friend to many and a great son, who found his niche as a doctor. After a rough break-up with his fiance, he started dating a much older woman who didn't seem quite right to his friends, who ignored it because they wanted to see him happy. He eventually broke up with her and sent her home on a plane, thinking it was over. She drove across the country and murdered him.
The film is a testament to those that loved Andrew with its immeasurable warmth and personal touch, but during filming Andrew's murderer is released and receives custody of their child. It changes the direction of the film dramatically and provides it with additional urgency, not that it really needed it. The movie packs emotional punch after emotional bunch, but it's better not to release anymore of the plot points and you should know as little as possible heading into the film.
Trust me, bring tissues. This film is truly overwhelming. It's almost impossible to compare it to anything else or assign it any kind of relative value. However, I always say that the point of art is to convey the emotion and experience of the human condition. By that measure, few films, if any, will stack up to this one.
Grade: A
"500 Days of Summer"
"500 Days of Summer" was a fantastic film. It's a wonderfully shot story of a relationship, 500 days of Tom (Joseph Gordon Levitt) and Summer (Zoey Deschanel). Another film that is hard to do justice to, "Summer" would technically be classified as a romantic comedy, but it's really a movie about the little things and the emotional intimacies of a relationship. Tom and Summer don't make it, I'm afraid, and it's something we know from the very beginning, which makes the story have a certain gravitas as it unfolds, with us looking for little details and hints of how it ends along the way.
"Summer" is the story of Tom, a greeting card writer, who meets Summer when she starts as an assistant at his work. They connect over The Smiths on the elevator and have a brief courtship highlighted by an amazing work function at a karaoke bar. The music has been carefully chosen and is a defining element of the film, helping set the tone and convey its meaning. The film is non-linear and jumps back and forth between the different stages of the relationship, from the courtship to the inevitable end.
This is director Mark Webb's first feature film, having come from a background in music videos, and he has an incredible eye for beauty in his cinematography. He has slick transitions between moments, split screens, and creative innovations in story-telling combined with a real understanding of the human heart. "Summer" manages to weave an engaging and gorgeous around this failed relationship. Summer was never going to marry Tom and sometimes life doesn't work out like the way we want it to. This is a hard lesson for Tom and we really feel his pain, but we also feel the joy along the ride and really come to understand why he loves her. Levitt and Deschanel are both incredible in their roles, which serves to elevate the film even further. This one will require multiple viewings to catch all of the intricacies. I can't wait.
Grade: A-
"Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father"
Simply put, this movie destroyed me and left me emotionally raw in a way that only a few movies ever have. It is on the short-list for most devastating picture I've ever experienced and that's saying a lot, trust me. When I reflect, I've only been affected to the point of tears a few times in my life: "I Am Sam", "Requiem for a Dream", "American History X", "United 93", and now "Dear Zachary." Of the bunch, "Zachary" and "United 93" had the biggest visceral impact, perhaps because of the power that the truth of the story provides their narrative. I know that "Requiem for a Dream" didn't happen, as attached as I am to the characters, and there's something to be said for the credibility that a true story or a documentary attaches to the emotional impact.
"Zachary" is the story of Andrew Bagby, who was murdered by his pregnant girlfriend, as told by the director Kurt Kuenne, who is a child-hood friend that made many an amateur film with Andrew growing up. Zachary is Andrew's son and Kurt wants him to know his father. He has some incredible footage and photographs to work with here, but that's not where he shines. Kurt tirelessly travels the country to interview those that knew and loved Andrew. He interviews extended family, classmates, co-workers, and, most extensively, his parents.
Andrew seems like he was an incredible kid, a best friend to many and a great son, who found his niche as a doctor. After a rough break-up with his fiance, he started dating a much older woman who didn't seem quite right to his friends, who ignored it because they wanted to see him happy. He eventually broke up with her and sent her home on a plane, thinking it was over. She drove across the country and murdered him.
The film is a testament to those that loved Andrew with its immeasurable warmth and personal touch, but during filming Andrew's murderer is released and receives custody of their child. It changes the direction of the film dramatically and provides it with additional urgency, not that it really needed it. The movie packs emotional punch after emotional bunch, but it's better not to release anymore of the plot points and you should know as little as possible heading into the film.
Trust me, bring tissues. This film is truly overwhelming. It's almost impossible to compare it to anything else or assign it any kind of relative value. However, I always say that the point of art is to convey the emotion and experience of the human condition. By that measure, few films, if any, will stack up to this one.
Grade: A
Saturday, July 11, 2009
"The Hurt Locker" Review: A+ - Go go see it now
I can already tell "The Hurt Locker" is going to be difficult to give its proper due. Part of me thinks it's going to be dismissed as another Iraq movie rather than a serious contender for best picture or, frankly, among the best war films ever made. At the very least, it's the defining film on the Iraq war. "The Hurt Locker" uses the vehicle of a war to make a film about human nature, living on the edge, and the things that motivate us. As a result, it looks for insight into the human experience during war rather than a cheap politically dig.
I'll be upfront about it, I'm getting tired of the brash nature of political commentary in films today-all most accomplish is an excessively negative and basic criticism that rarely, if ever, borders on something nearly as constructive as most of the love and diversity messages in children's television. Don't get me wrong, it can be well executed like "Wall-E", but documentaries are the most successful medium here. Most of Hollywood's attempts seem self-serving or so shallow you wish they'd never tried in the first place.
For my money, movies that have genuine insight into human relationships are the ones I'm bound to find profound. Last year's "Rachel Get Married" blew me away on that front and films like "Requiem for a Dream" and "American Beauty" get multiple viewings a year in my house. If the end of art is to communicate experience, I think that films that really put you into someone else's shoes are so much more incredible than these cheap-thrills-huge-special-effects-so-dumb-you-don't-even-have-to-think blockbusters. Besides, I'll take the thrills in "The Hurt Locker" against pretty much anything else anyway. I was borderline exhausted entering the theatre, but my adrenaline pumped for 2 hours and 13 minutes and the classic Craig falling asleep in a movie he really wants to see trap never had a chance.
"The Hurt Locker" follows Jeremy Renner (the marine from "28 Weeks Later") who deserves Oscar consideration for his portrayal of Staff Sergeant William James, a bomb specialist working with Anthony Mackie (Papa Doc from "8 Mile"), also masterful as his by-the-book Sergeant Sanborn, to diffuse the IED's, car bombs, and suicide bombings that happen all too frequently in Iraq.
It is the grittiest, most realistic portayal of a soldier's life in Iraq I've seen and goes much further than "Three Kings" did years ago. It's 2004 and Renner replaces Guy Pearce, who played it safe and still gets dusted in the first five minutes. Renner is reckless-he refuses to use the bomb robot and while diffusing a huge car bomb he takes off his protective suit saying, "If I'm going to die, I'm going to die comfortably." He's a badass because, despite his bravado, he's incredible at his job; he can think like the bomb maker and stays in the line of danger until the very last second.
The movie opens with the line "War is a drug" and the adrenaline is something that keeps Renner hooked on war. He's disabled 873 bombs, which is an absolutely staggering amount and makes it tough to balance his need to be with his family. This isn't unique to bomb techs-those who publish newspapers or become investment bankers get hooked on the constant rush and often can't settle into less exciting environments; however, the adjustment is so extreme for those coming home from war, from fighting for life and death on a daily basis to the mundane of the American routine. We feel for Renner, who, despite his swagger, is a good guy who's just a little nuts. You have to be a little crazy for that job, right?
The movie itself is excellent-it's taut and provides the kind of details that bring the soldier's experience to life. Pinned down by snipers, the soldiers must remain alert for hours and hours after they're pretty sure they've finished them off. They can't take chances. Running out of water packets, they are fighting fatigue and dehydration as they bake in the heat. You feel how brutal that must be. One of the squad members constantly struggles with his fear of the front-line ("Does be all you can be mean dead on the streets of Baghdad") against the party line of the military psychiatrist ("War doesn't have to be a bad time in your life.") and the tension is palpable.
The cinematography and direction are perfect here, really illuminating the story without making it feel too Hollywood or dramatic. The attention to detail, from the details on the bombs to the realism of the scenarios, lets this incredible reality speak for itself rather than dramatize the situation. I recently watched "Pearl Harbor" at the behest of a friend and I feel grateful for a war movie that doesn't feel the least bit exploitative. The characters in "Pearl Harbor" feel shallow and unlikable and you come to understand and admire the ones here.
I could really talk about this movie all-day and I suspect I've already spoken about it too much. Do yourself a favor and go see it, I'm going to go see it again soon.
Grade: A+
I'll be upfront about it, I'm getting tired of the brash nature of political commentary in films today-all most accomplish is an excessively negative and basic criticism that rarely, if ever, borders on something nearly as constructive as most of the love and diversity messages in children's television. Don't get me wrong, it can be well executed like "Wall-E", but documentaries are the most successful medium here. Most of Hollywood's attempts seem self-serving or so shallow you wish they'd never tried in the first place.
For my money, movies that have genuine insight into human relationships are the ones I'm bound to find profound. Last year's "Rachel Get Married" blew me away on that front and films like "Requiem for a Dream" and "American Beauty" get multiple viewings a year in my house. If the end of art is to communicate experience, I think that films that really put you into someone else's shoes are so much more incredible than these cheap-thrills-huge-special-effects-so-dumb-you-don't-even-have-to-think blockbusters. Besides, I'll take the thrills in "The Hurt Locker" against pretty much anything else anyway. I was borderline exhausted entering the theatre, but my adrenaline pumped for 2 hours and 13 minutes and the classic Craig falling asleep in a movie he really wants to see trap never had a chance.
"The Hurt Locker" follows Jeremy Renner (the marine from "28 Weeks Later") who deserves Oscar consideration for his portrayal of Staff Sergeant William James, a bomb specialist working with Anthony Mackie (Papa Doc from "8 Mile"), also masterful as his by-the-book Sergeant Sanborn, to diffuse the IED's, car bombs, and suicide bombings that happen all too frequently in Iraq.
It is the grittiest, most realistic portayal of a soldier's life in Iraq I've seen and goes much further than "Three Kings" did years ago. It's 2004 and Renner replaces Guy Pearce, who played it safe and still gets dusted in the first five minutes. Renner is reckless-he refuses to use the bomb robot and while diffusing a huge car bomb he takes off his protective suit saying, "If I'm going to die, I'm going to die comfortably." He's a badass because, despite his bravado, he's incredible at his job; he can think like the bomb maker and stays in the line of danger until the very last second.
The movie opens with the line "War is a drug" and the adrenaline is something that keeps Renner hooked on war. He's disabled 873 bombs, which is an absolutely staggering amount and makes it tough to balance his need to be with his family. This isn't unique to bomb techs-those who publish newspapers or become investment bankers get hooked on the constant rush and often can't settle into less exciting environments; however, the adjustment is so extreme for those coming home from war, from fighting for life and death on a daily basis to the mundane of the American routine. We feel for Renner, who, despite his swagger, is a good guy who's just a little nuts. You have to be a little crazy for that job, right?
The movie itself is excellent-it's taut and provides the kind of details that bring the soldier's experience to life. Pinned down by snipers, the soldiers must remain alert for hours and hours after they're pretty sure they've finished them off. They can't take chances. Running out of water packets, they are fighting fatigue and dehydration as they bake in the heat. You feel how brutal that must be. One of the squad members constantly struggles with his fear of the front-line ("Does be all you can be mean dead on the streets of Baghdad") against the party line of the military psychiatrist ("War doesn't have to be a bad time in your life.") and the tension is palpable.
The cinematography and direction are perfect here, really illuminating the story without making it feel too Hollywood or dramatic. The attention to detail, from the details on the bombs to the realism of the scenarios, lets this incredible reality speak for itself rather than dramatize the situation. I recently watched "Pearl Harbor" at the behest of a friend and I feel grateful for a war movie that doesn't feel the least bit exploitative. The characters in "Pearl Harbor" feel shallow and unlikable and you come to understand and admire the ones here.
I could really talk about this movie all-day and I suspect I've already spoken about it too much. Do yourself a favor and go see it, I'm going to go see it again soon.
Grade: A+
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