The Dave Matthews Band announced their summer tour schedule today. Unfortunately, though, they will not be hitting Dallas like last year. The closest to Monroe is some place in Texas further than Dallas. Looks like they are only doing outdoor venues this year. It's probably a blessing though since Lacey and I will be a newly-married, broke couple:) Anyway, the entire list of dates and venues is up on their website. They are reportedly working on their next studio album, the follow-up to Busted Stuff. So I bet there will be some new material to introduce on tour, that I'll miss. Maybe next year.
Yep, that about sums up my feeling on the matter. I have always hated cellphones. Sure, they make life easier in some instances, but they are such a pain. Always worried about charging them, leaving them on in movies (I hate that!) or church, where it is, whose number is in your address book, etc etc. Blech! Also, I always saw them as a sign of being a "preppy" and I definitely wanted to avoid that. Plus, when a rat ate 1 million pounds of nutrasweet, then talked on his cellphone for the rest of his life, he ended up getting cancer. So there's that danger. All that to say, I finally succumbed to the pressure and got a cellphone yesterday. With my job and being so busy all the time, and the fact that Lacey and I aren't married yet, so we're always having to coordinate our schedules on the run, it just became too much of a necessity to pass up. Anyway, when you see me using it, feel free to laugh. Or give me a call on it and do it over the phone:)
To keep this from being a movie and music only blog, I figured I should write about yesterday. Last evening was my first taste of Mardi Gras in Louisiana. Monroe had their annual Mardi Gras parade (why it was last night, don't ask me). A bunch of us got together outside, cooked and ate 75 pounds of crawfish, drank, and watched the parade. It was a fun experience, despite the 35 degree temperature and rain. I caught about 20 pounds of beads, and the floats were amazing, even though there weren't many of them. All in all, what made the day was being around the people I love. We have a blast together, and it was even more special being Valentine's day. This was my first official Valentine's day with Lacey (last year we were apart), and it was wonderful. I'm not going to be too shmoopy, but she did get me the Lost in Translation DVD:) Anyway, it was a great day, and much fun was had by all, much more so because I love the people down here. Bad grammar and everything.
Her new album, Feels Like Home, came out yesterday. I had high hopes for it, given that I liked her first one so much. So I bought it "for Lacey" as an early Valentines gift, and promptly listened to it through, twice. And maybe it'll grow on me the more I listen. However, as of now, it's a bit of a disappointment. The songs are a little more up-beat and country-ish. For the most part I like it, but the only purpose it is serving right now is to make me want to listen to Come Away With Me again. Maybe it's just the popularized "sophomore slump". Anyway, it's a decent album, just not as good as her first. And no, this is not an in-depth music review, I'm writing off the top of my head. So please don't get annoyed with me.
No, I'm not going to write about my Oscar picks. I want to talk a little about them though. There was an interesting point brought up in a recent discussion of Cold Mountain. Should movies be made with the express purpose of winning Oscars? Now, I think the Academy Awards have almost become a joke these days. Very rarely do deserving films, actors, etc. even get nominated, much less win. However, the Oscars are still the benchmark that most people in this country look to for which movies are "good". Now, that is neither here nor there, and could be grounds for a long discussion. But back to my original question.
My gut response would be no. I think it's kind of cheesy to make movies just to win Oscars. But really, it depends on the genre of movie you are talking about. Action movies, comedies, etc. should be made to entertain. Dramas and the like, in my humble opinion, should be made for aesthetic, and artistic quality. I don't like pretentious films, but I do like thought-provoking, interesting ones. Anyway, that is not the point. These days, I would say that most movies are made solely to make money. Now, I think THAT is a terrible motivation. But to make a movie to win Oscars? Not so bad. I mean, think about it. When you attack a movie for trying to win Oscars, you’re not attacking the movie itself. You’re attacking what it’s trying to do. But what is so wrong with what they are trying to do? Of course it’s trying to win Oscars. A movie is not inherently bad just because that is why it is made. Fundamentally, if a movie tries to win Oscars, it is trying to be a good film, because (theoretically) the good films are the one that win Oscars. So by trying to win Oscars, it’s trying to be a good film, which should be the goal of any director/crew/cast/etc. Like I said, however, most movies these days want to win Oscars to make money, and so the Oscars have almost become a joke. But when you get right down to it, making a movie to win Oscars can almost be a good thing, if those making it stay true to the spirit of making a good film, and the belief that the good films will win the awards. And as a side note, I think Cold Mountain stayed that course pretty well.
Well, I haven't seen everything. But I think I've now seen enough to post my top movies of 2003. Keep in mind, this is not a list of my favorite movies of 2003, or the most enjoyable. It's kind of a mixture between those criteria (especially the end of the list), and the films I think were the best of the year. One thing to note: I haven't yet seen House of Sand and Fog, or Master and Commander, so that may affect the list, once I do.
1.Mystic River
2.Lost in Translation
3.Cold Mountain
4.Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
5.Kill Bill: Volume 1
6.Big Fish
7.Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
8.Elf
9.Peter Pan
10.28 Days Later
Again, with the late reviews! Anyway, after much anticipation and good word of mouth, we finally went to see Cold Mountain this weekend. It definitely lived up to what we had heard. I thought it was extremely well-done. Obviously there were a couple of scenes that probably didn't need to be in there, but on the whole it was outstanding.
Jude Law is flat-out cool. I thought he did an excellent job. In fact, acting on the whole in this movie was wonderful. I have to say though, I think Renee Zellwegger is over-hyped. I mean, sure she did a fine job. But I would disagree that it was this "great performance". I think she had a lot to work with, a screwball role that made her look good. And let's face it, she probably even overacted a bit. In my opinion, it is far tougher to play a more subdued role, like Sean Penn in Mystic River. I think being able to just be wacky shouldn't be rewarded in Hollywood as much as it is.
Anyways, the movie was very very good. The scenery was beautiful, the cinematography was excellent, the soundtrack, acting, etc. were first-rate. And the thing that Minghella (I like all of his movies, by the way) did was not to paint one side as good, and one side as bad (North vs. South that is), which stays true to the book. He really just paints war as absolutely horrific. It does something to mens' souls, and it affects EVERYONE. There is a scene with Natalie Portman, where Lacey and I almost lost it. It is incredibly heartbreaking to watch. The whole movie is obviously very sad, but not overly so, like Monster apparently, so that you walk out of the movie ready to give up on life. I was happy about that. I think they achieved a good balance between cheesy happy ending (which isn't allowed in a Civil War movie...the subject matter doesn't lend to that), and downright depressing.
I would highly recommend the movie, and while it wasn't the best movie of last year, I can now put out my top movies of 2003. Stay Tuned.
Yes, I know it's a little late. This movie has been out for a while now. However, Lacey and I just saw it, so it's time to review it.
This was an excellent movie. A lot of fun from the opening minutes, it extended beyond that, beyond the obvious kiddie movie, into something better. The acting was excellent, especially by Jason Isaacs. And this was the first production of this tale that finally centered around the fact that it is NOT ok to be a boy forever. It is GOOD to grow up. That is what being a responsible human being is all about. There is a great dialogue between Wendy's mom and the kids about their father, where she outlines courage and its different types. I would recommend the movie merely for that. However there is definitely much more.
The movie is obviously wonderful to look at. I really liked the special f/x, fight scenes, scenery and cinematography. The soundtrack was nothing to write home about, but solid. Everything about this movie transcended mere kid movie. It is not just for them, it's for the grown-ups too, which is why I can easily recommend it for all ages.