er…are we allowed to discuss other (ahem) cultural items other than movies on this list or will that endanger its purity? I spit on your rules! since I live in out in the woods now I rarely see any movies except on DVD–and the movies I have seen lately at the cineplexes overrun by teenagers have run to the likes of Blade: Trinity, National Treasure and Aliens vs Predator rather than all this high-toned consequences of irresponsibility stuff I keep hearing about (by the way, the Predators win–apparently because they have cool dredlocks like Bob Marley and secretly dig humans. me, I’d rather have 3 sets of fangs and acid for blood. baby, then somebody would pay! since when did the predators become such sell-outs?). Anyhoo, I have been watching last season’s 24 on DVD, thanks to Netflix….and, er, I don’t know what point I have to make, except it’s cool when the helicopter blows up. oh wait, here it is, I think–it is a weird combination of slick dense overplotting with remarkably blatant “holes” in it–it makes me think of us and the dinosaurs. apparently they died when they became too specialized in evolution–then the slightest change became lethal because they were so adapted to current circumstances. a giant edifice of knowledge with a spot of stupidity, small but of stunning vulnerability. make cultural hay out of that! jesus, I’m tired…..
no talking about tv. keep it pure. and this ain’t a list, it is a blog.
I’d talk about tv. I hear 24 is good, but I wish it were less of a commitment. 7. I could handle 7.
We tried “Alias.” I enjoyed it as long as it made little sense, but Kris still likes it.
After watching tv shows on dvd, I fear I can’t handle sitting through commercials and the dull expository stretches of network television. But “The Wire” and “Deadwood” are as good as anything out at the theaters.
Mike,
I’m glad you’re not a repressive purist. I would also highly recommend Dead Like Me–I am going through Season 1 right now. I watched several episodes of The Wire but couldn’t figure out who was who–I had the same problem with Band of Brothers, even after watching all of the episodes. All I knew at the end of that one was that a black haired one and a blonde one had survived, and I also learned that if you fought in WW2 you were some kind of superman, but in an unassuming American kind of way. What have Spielberg, Tom Hanks and Tom Brokaw wrought? If Private Ryan had really been a stunning asshole–say, a real old-style American dumb kinda redneck or just a dim foul-mouthed jock, Saving Pvt Ryan would have been a great rather than just a good movie.
i watched “alien vs. predator”, or “avp”, if you will, last night. i think i could have crapped a better movie if i’d been given whatever silly amount of money this thing cost. and is it me or have the predators become a little chunkier since the last time around?
you are correct, Arnab–they are chunkier because the movie was so cheap it just decided to forego all the special effects money and just put linebackers into rastafarian costumes. In its way, the film in its cheapness and old-fashionedness is kind of endearing–except probably when you realize it was just meant as an elaborate promo for the video game. If you have lost a purpose in your life, as I have, and are keeping track of such things: Residence Evil: Apocalypse is better than Blade: Trinity which is better than AVP. AVP’s lone bit of wit is casting lance henrickson and making a small allusion to Aliens. I am waiting for Abbott and Costello meet Jason meet Freddy meet Predator, etc.
the pc game (and a comic book, i think) predates the movie. personally i think they should have done away with having human characters at all (this seems to be an analogue of putting a white character or two at the center of a movie about a third world country) and just made it an all out predator vs. alien slugfest. and yes, throw freddy, jason, pinhead etc. in there. and maybe robocop and the terminator (before he grew a conscience). i’d like to see the mama alien take on michael myers too if you can arrange it.