Do You Like LOST?

Me, too...I mean, really like LOST.  Damn if this season isn't the best yet, every episode making good on the promise to get to the heart of things while turning up the action and suspence week after week.  At first I was skeptical about the seemingly eternal waits between each (now shortened to 16 eps per) seasons, but if this is the quality they're going to be churning out, I'm all aboard.

Meanwhile, why did it take almost five years for someone to come up with this comic?

By Popular Demand

For Mike and Shara...the Boy, in his grinning, wispy-haired glory.

I was again graced with the honor of my wife and son's presence for lunch today, so we skipped out to Bertucci's for some pasta and crayon coloring.  Lately he's been on a kick about having his picture taken, so he's always ready with a "cheese!" and a flashy of the pearly whites, even if he doesn't always look into the camera.

Fatherhood continues to be a completely new experience every other day.  Just as soon as I have something down he does something new.  Yesterday was taking the cushions off the couch and using them as trampolines, which I would normally be fine with, except that he's about as agile as moose, and more often than not springs himself face-first onto our hardwood floor. 

He's also decided to go through a weird bubble phobia.  He'll sit and play in a bathtub filled with bubbles, but as soon as he comes out of the tub he begins to shout and whine if he sees any bubbles sticking to him.  It goes something like this:

ME (lifting him up and putting him on the bath mat): Okay, 1-2-3...Out of the tub!! Stomp stomp stomp!

HIM (stomping):  Dadda!  Oh, no!!! Bubbles! (points to three infinitesimally small bubbles on his knee)  No Bubbles, Dadda, no!

ME (frantically grabbing towels): Jackie, calm down.  They're bubbles.  You were just playing in them...

HIM (lips quivering in sad but adorable baby fashion):  OHHHH, NOOOOO!!!!

This is one of those "makes you want to laugh and cry" examples.  I honestly feel horrible whenever I see his face get upset like that but, at the same time, they're bubbles, so it's pretty funny, and I wind up laughing as I rush to rid the boy of the unseemly bubbles.

Kids.  Love it.

Viral Exercises

**UPDATE**  I got an email from a friend last night correcting me by saying this is actually an example of a chain letter rather than a meme, which actually makes a lot more sense when he explained the (nefarious) reasons behind its distribution.

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This meme chain letter has been going around for a few months now. The gist of it goes that, if you've seen more than 85 of the films listed below, you have no life.

Now, I'm all for a good meme now and again. Over on Facebook (yes, I'm becoming more and more addicted to updating that Devil of the Interwebs) I've been involved in a couple prompted by friends - some are simple, random fun things, some provoked some interesting thoughts and allowed me to remenisce over fond musical memories...

...But this one is ridiculous. I'm guessing that this means all film critics and amateur enthusiasts have no life. Whatever. I'm cranky, had little sleep last night and was forced to abandon my steaming cup of coffee to assist in setting up a remote meeting I wasn't taking part of this morning. So below the break is the list 239 films (why 239? Already the stupidity is mounting) with the ones I've seen marked with an "X".

And, rather than tagging anyone with this excuse for a meme, I'd love to hear your thoughts on the whole "meme" phenomenon. Do you particiapte? Create? Why or why not?

(X) Rocky Horror Picture Show
(X) Grease
(X) Pirates of the Caribbean
(X) Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man's Chest
(  ) Boondock Saints
(X) Fight Club
(X) Starsky and Hutch
(X) Neverending Story
(X) Blazing Saddles
(X) Airplane

Total: 9

(X) The Princess Bride
(X) Anchorman
(X) Napoleon Dynamite
(X) Labyrinth
(X) Saw II
(  ) White Noise
(  ) White Oleander
(X) Anger Management
(X) 50 First Dates
(X) The Princess Diaries
(  ) The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement

Total so far: 17

(X) Scream
(X) Scream 2
(  ) Scream 3
(X) Scary Movie
(X) Scary Movie 2
(  ) Scary Movie 3
(  ) Scary Movie 4
(X) American Pie
(X) American Pie 2
(X) American Wedding
(  ) American Pie Band Camp

Total so far: 24

(X) Harry Potter 1
(X) Harry Potter 2
(X) Harry Potter 3
(X) Harry Potter 4
(X) Resident Evil 1
(X) Resident Evil 2
(X) The Wedding Singer
(  ) Little Black Book
(X) The Village
(  ) Lilo & Stitch

Total so far: 32

(X) Finding Nemo
(X) Finding Neverland
(X) Signs
(  ) The Grinch
(  ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre (I'm assuming the remake, since its sequel is listed below)
(  ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
(  ) White Chicks
(  ) Butterfly Effect
(  ) 13 Going on 30
(X) I, Robot
(X) Robots

Total so far: 37

(X) Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
(  ) Universal Soldier
(X) Lemony Snicket: A Series Of Unfortunate Events
(X) Along Came Polly
(X) Deep Impact
(X) KingPin
(X) Never Been Kissed
(X) Meet The Parents
(X) Meet the Fockers
(X ) Eight Crazy Nights
(X) Joe Dirt
(X) King Kong (again, assuming the PJ remake here since nothing seems to be older than the 80's)

Total so far: 48

(  ) A Cinderella Story
(X) The Terminal
(  ) The Lizzie McGuire Movie
(  ) Passport to Paris
(X) Dumb & Dumber
(  ) Dumber & Dumberer
(X) Final Destination
(  ) Final Destination 2
(  ) Final Destination 3
(  ) Halloween (once again, assuming this is the Rob Zombie remake)
(X) The Ring
(X) The Ring 2
(  ) Surviving X-MAS
(  ) Flubber

Total so far: 53

(X) Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
(X) Practical Magic
(X) Chicago
(X) Ghost Ship
(X) From Hell
(X) Hellboy
(X) Secret Window
( ) I Am Sam
(X) The Whole Nine Yards
( ) The Whole Ten Yards

Total so far: 61

(X) The Day After Tomorrow
(X) Child's Play
(  ) Seed of Chucky
(  ) Bride of Chucky
(X) Ten Things I Hate About You
(  ) Just Married
(X) Gothika
(X) Nightmare on Elm Street
(X) Sixteen Candles
(X) Remember the Titans
(  ) Coach Carter
(  ) The Grudge (assuming tha both this and the sequel refer to the hollywood remakes)
(  ) The Grudge 2
(X) The Mask
(  ) Son Of The Mask

Total so far: 69

(  ) Bad Boys
(  ) Bad Boys 2
(X) Joy Ride
(X) Lucky Number Slevin
(X) Ocean's Eleven
(X) Ocean's Twelve
(X) Bourne Identity
(X) Bourne Supremacy
(X) Lone Star
(  ) Bedazzled
(X) Predator I
(X) Predator II
(  ) The Fog (I'm assuming this is the remake, not the John Carpenter original)
(  ) Ice Age
(  ) Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
(  ) Curious George

Total so far: 77

(X) Independence Day
(X) Cujo
( ) A Bronx Tale
(X) Darkness Falls
(  ) Christine
(X) ET
(X) Children of the Corn
(  ) My Bosses Daughter
(  ) Maid in Manhattan
(X) War of the Worlds
(X) Rush Hour
(X) Rush Hour 2

Total so far: 85

(  ) Best Bet
(  ) How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
(  ) She's All That
(  ) Calendar Girls
(X) Sideways
(X) Mars Attacks
(X) Event Horizon
(  ) Ever After
(X) Wizard of Oz
(X) Forrest Gump
(X) Big Trouble in Little China
(X) The Terminator
(X) The Terminator 2
(  ) The Terminator 3

Total so far: 93

(X) X-Men
(X) X-2
(X) X-3
(X) Spider-Man
(X) Spider-Man 2
(X) Sky High
(X) Jeepers Creepers
(  ) Jeepers Creepers 2
(X) Catch Me If You Can
(X) The Little Mermaid
(  ) Freaky Friday
(X) Reign of Fire
(  ) The Skulls
(X) Cruel Intentions
(  ) Cruel Intentions 2
(  ) The Hot Chick
(X) Shrek
(X) Shrek 2

Total so far: 106

(  ) Swimfan
(  ) Miracle on 34th street (maybe the remake?  Not checking just in case, but I saw the '34 version)
(X) Old School
(  ) The Notebook
(  ) K-Pax
(  ) Krippendorf's Tribe
(  ) A Walk to Remember
(  ) Ice Castles
(X) Boogeyman
(X) The 40-year-old Virgin

Total so far: 109

(X) Lord of the Rings Fellowship of the Ring
(X) Lord of the Rings The Two Towers
(X) Lord of the Rings Return Of the King
(X) Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
(X) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
(X) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

Total so far: 115

(X) Baseketball
(X) Hostel
(X) Waiting for Guffman
(X) House of 1000 Corpses
(X) Devils Rejects
(X) Elf
(X) Highlander
(  ) Mothman Prophecies
(  ) American History X
(  ) Three

Total so Far: 122

(X) The Jacket
(X) Kung Fu Hustle
(X) Shaolin Soccer
(X) Night Watch
(X) Monsters Inc.
(X) Titanic
(X) Monty Python and the Holy Grail
(X) Shaun Of the Dead
(X) Willard (remake, although I saw both)

Total so far: 131

(X) High Tension
(X) Club Dread
(X) Hulk
(X) Dawn Of the Dead (assuming remake, but saw both)
(X) Hook
(X) Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe
(X) 28 days later
(X) Orgazmo
(X) Phantasm
(X) Waterworld

Total so far: 141

(X) Kill Bill vol 1
(X) Kill Bill vol 2
(X) Mortal Kombat
(  ) Wolf Creek
(X) Kingdom of Heaven
(X) The Hills Have Eyes (assuming remake?  who knows)
(X) I Spit on Your Grave aka the Day of the Woman
(  ) The Last House on the Left
(X) Re-Animator
(X) Army of Darkness

Total so far: 149

(X) Star Wars Ep. I The Phantom Menace
(X) Star Wars Ep. II Attack of the Clones
(X) Star Wars Ep. III Revenge of the Sith
(X) Star Wars Ep. IV A New Hope
(X) Star Wars Ep. V The Empire Strikes Back
(X) Star Wars Ep. VI Return of the Jedi
(  ) Ewoks Caravan Of Courage
(  ) Ewoks The Battle For Endor

Total so far: 155

(X) The Matrix
(X) The Matrix Reloaded
(X) The Matrix Revolutions
(X) Animatrix
(X) Evil Dead
(X) Evil Dead 2
(X) Team America: World Police
(X) Red Dragon (assuming the Ratner version, though I've seen both)
(X) Silence of the Lambs
(X) Hannibal

Total so far: 165

One Among Many

Almost 10:00 PM...took almost an extra hour to get Jack to bed...kept screaming out for us...when I went in he jumped in my arms and said "Book!" over and over again through is tears...I drew a line when I set him down on the floor, in the pitch black of our bedroom he stood there, gazing into nothingness but i could feel it nonetheless...then without a word he walked out of our bedroom, into the darkness of the hallway and back into his bedroom...in the green gloew emanating from his humidifier I watched him tap on the bars of his crib...I lifted him in the air, laid him down and put his monkey in his arms...covered him in his blanket and walked out, quietly closing the door behind me...

For the last hour I've been listening to the monitor...there hasn't been a sound.

Oscar Pre-Game, and a Revised Top 10

The awards start in a few hours, Swedish death/punk metal band Entombed is playing in my headphones, and instead of finally sitting down and watching THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON I'm here writing this up. Because, frankly, I'm tired of the catch-up, the drive to sit through BUTTON has pretty much evaporated. I'm sure I'll catch up with it in the next few weeks, but for now I'm content with being a few movies short.

Before getting to my revised list, here are my lame-o predictions, for what they're worth (you can see how I did last year over here):

Best Actor: For weeks the odds have been on either Mickey Rourke or Sean Penn, with the difference being who gets Best Picture.  The thinking is if SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE trounces like everything believes, then Penn will get best actor to make up for MILK's losses.  I have no idea if this kind of thinking goes into the decisioning, but for my money Rourke was galvanizing in THE WRESTLER, and deserves the award.  Will not being nominated for anything else hurt it?  Who knows.

Best Supporting Actor: I don't see how anyone has a chance against Heath Ledger this year.  They're already re-writing the rule so that his daughter can have the statue held in trust until she's 18.  His Joker was without a doubt the highlight of THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, and I think all the other (supposed) snubs the film's received will make this a shoo-in.  All that being said, how frickin' great was Robert Downey jr. in TROPIC THUNDER?  And how frickin' cool to be recognized for it?  My heart goes out, though, to James Franco who was equally amazing in PINEAPPLE EXPRESS, but get no nod here.  One day the Academy will wise up to the acting intricacies of comedy.  But this year just be glad a comic book character is getting the award.

Best Actress: I think they give it to Kate Winslet, even though my worship of her beauty didn't blind me to the fact that THE READER was merely an okay movie that didn't offer anything special in its execution.  In a perfect world?  Michelle Williams would have been nominated for the incredible WENDY AND LUCY, and we'd be seeing either her or Anne Hathaway up at the podium tonight.  Nice to see Melissa Leo get a nod for FROZEN RIVER, but who are we fooling with the Angelina Jolie nomination?  The old fashioned acting apparent in CHANGELING doesn't hold up with the rest of the nominated company.

Best Supporting Actress: Always a hard category, and I'd be happy with Viola Davis or Penelope Cruz - both are so draw-dropping you can't take your eyes off of them in their all-too-brief performances in DOUBT and VICKY CHRISTINA BARCELONA, respectively.  I did love Marisa Tomei in THE WRESTLER, but I think her role as Pam/Cassidy didn't turn the movie on its head the way the other two performances did.

Best Director: is this where the SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE train starts a-rollin'?  I don't have nearly the ill will for this movie that a lot of others seem to.  And Danny Boyle may have a flashy, LCD visual style in many of his films, but I think he uses every trick to propel the story forward.  Not having seen BUTTON I can't comment on David Fincher's further (wonderful) Kubrickain spiral, but he and Gus Van Sant seem to be the only other contenders here.  This may be the rare year where we see a different Director and Best Picture win.

Best Picture: The money seems to be on SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE, and I'd be hard pressed to go against it.  Out of the nominated films, I was most affected by MILK, and I would love to see that get the win.  But I wouldn't be overly upset at a SLUMDOG win: to  be honest I'm more upset at a film like THE READER taking a slot where (IMHO) a more deserving film like DOUBT or IN BRUGES could have been placed. FROST / NIXON was really good, but over time seems to have faded as more and more better movies kept jumping up in its place.  And although I had plenty of reservations about THE DARK KNIGHT as a "perfect" film, it's record numbers (not something I'd normally consider as indicative of quality) and generally high praise does seem conspicuously absent this year.

A few others, sans the pithy comments:

• Best Screenplay (Original): WALL-E or MILK, although I wish it would go to IN BRUGES
• Best Screenplay (Adapted): DOUBT, though it will probably go to either MILK or SLUMDOG
• Best Music - Original Song: "O Saya" By A.R. Rahman and M.I.A., although I think there was a real snub in not nominating either "Dracula's Lament" or "Inside Of You" from FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL
• Best Music - Original Score: WALL-E

And now, without any comments (hooray) after watching about another 20 films from 2008 after the initial was made (you can see that here), here is my new Top 10 for 2008, in no real discernible order:

1. MILK
2. IN BRUGES
3. DOUBT
4. LET THE RIGHT ONE IN
5. WALL-E
6. THE WRESTLER
7. IRON MAN
8. THE FALL
9. SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE
10. PINEAPPLE EXPRESS/FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL