The Last Picture Show

Posted on March 5, 2006
Filed Under Blather, family, films, the telly, the written word | 1 Comment

I find Roger Ebert’s movie reviews consistently not quite on target. He tries to get at the art of a film, but his comments still seem surface-y to me. OK, I don’t read his reviews very often, so maybe that’s not fair. Here’s my case in point. Last night Ez and I watched The Last Picture Show. We’d Tivo’d it off of TCM. I can sing the praises of TCM again here. They can air it, uncut and in all its original complexity, late at night when most young kids won’t be up. And let’s face it, most young kids are not going to get through the first ten minutes of this nuanced black and white film anyway. So… I had tried to watch this film once or twice before many years ago. I think I had some idea in my head that I would watch it because I liked Cybill Shepherd from Moonlighting. I didn’t get past the first few minutes. Her performance is good, but there’s so much more going on in the film, and so many other great performances, it would be a shame to focus on her and miss or discount all the rest.

I really loved it. Most of the reviews I’ve seen focus on how it’s a story about a dying town. They debate whether it’s nostalgic or anti-nostalgic. They talk about how it fits into film history and how it shows Orson Welles’ and Howard Hawks’ influence. Those are all interesting and important parts of the film, but for me the best part are the shockingly great performances–and so many of them. The connection between Sonny (Timothy Bottoms) and Ruth (Cloris Leachman) works so well, and is so heartbreaking right from the start. They are both fantastic, and the end is just perfect for the film. I knew I wanted an ending something like that as I watched the film, and the way it’s done is just right.

So… After seeing the movie I poked around online and read some reviews. Ebert supplied this one , which is OK, but never seems to get to the heart of things, and this one, which is much better, but still not entirely satisfying (to me). I hate how he flatly states that one scene is “the best.” The scene he’s talking about is a great scene, and it’s very important to the film as a whole, but there are lots of other “best” scenes. It seems wrong to splice up the movie that way. I guess I like this review, from Neil Young (odd little coincidence, I guess!), because it finally gives lead actor Timothy Bottoms his due. Why don’t people rave about his performance? So many of the other actors in the film were nominated for and even won Oscars, and there seems to be lots of talk about how great they were and how this was their breakout film, but he is rarely mentioned. I thought he gave possibly the best performance in the whole film (along with Cloris Leachman, who is just devastating). I like that the reviewer juxtaposes the film against American Graffiti. I made a similar mental comparison. And I guess I also like this review because he talks about the last scene. I love the acting in this scene. I love how the emotions come across more from their movements and their faces and their hands than from words. Sonny and Ruth have this deep sadness, and they “get” that sadness maybe more than any other characters in the film. That the town is dying is interesting. Where it fits in American cultural history is interesting. But what’s much more interesting to me is what’s happening inside all of these people in that town.

Betty Friedan Dies

Posted on February 5, 2006
Filed Under Blather, politics, the written word | Leave a Comment

Lately I have been thinking–and getting a bit angry–about how marginalized and “wacko-ized” feminism has become. If it wasn’t totally mainstream before, it’s now largely discredited or somehow quaint. That pisses me off. I haven’t examined the whole thing so carefully yet that I feel like I can say exactly what the problem is or what to do about it, but:

I was annoyed to read that stilletto heels are supposedly coming back into fashion.
I was disappointed and a bit outraged to read the Globe magazine’s “Coupling” feature a few weeks back that basically said that any couple that doesn’t have children isn’t really happy. Who was the woman who wrote it to make such a suggestion? And what the hell decade am I living in? And for that matter–where?

So when I read a few moments ago that Betty Friedan just died, I had the feeling that I’ve been having about a lot of other recent deaths… She won’t live to see some of the crap that’s going on, and maybe she wouldn’t have wanted to see it.

Labor Day

Posted on September 5, 2005
Filed Under Blather, Red Sox, daytripping, dining, family, music, the written word | Leave a Comment

Last Thursday night Ezra kindly joined me for the Hail Social/Rainer Maria show at the Middle East. I am loving Hail Social–their whole album is quite infectious, and the only disappointment at the show was the crowd. The place was a bit empty. I guess a lot of folks still don’t know about Hail Social. Part of me wishes I’d taken my camera, because it seemed like I would have been able to take loads of pictures. Oh well–maybe I’ll take my camera for Of Montreal on Sunday. We did have Ezra’s camera and managed to get a few pictures–mostly of Rainer Maria. They were decent. I’m not a huge fan, but it was an OK show.

Friday night my parents arrived for a weekend visit. It’s always nice when they come up here to visit–it tends to feel more relaxed than other visits for some reason. On Saturday we grilled in the afternoon and attempted to go to the night’s baseball game. That didn’t quite work out, but I was able to get a promise that they’ll plan ahead to go to a game with us next year. Sunday we drove up to Ogunquit. I thought we should check it out since it’s just one exit past Kittery and we’d never really been there. We parked in Perkins Cove (we had the magic touch with parking spaces all day) and walked around, taking everything in. It’s very cute, and after a couple of downpours on the highway on the way up, it turned out to be a gorgeous day.

Boats, Perkins Cove

We drove back along Route 1 past the little houses and many antique shops and stopped for some “Back to School” shopping at the outlets. Then (of course) we took the folks to the Portsmouth Brewery for dinner. I think they enjoyed the day. I know they really like Maine, so I wanted to get up there, and I wanted to go somewhere new (Ogunquit). They left after breakfast this morning.

It’s another gorgeous day. I was going to do some work (yeah, I know, despite it being Labor Day), but then I had to get outside, so I went for a jog. I’ll probably still do a little work anyway–but just a little.

Maybe you’ve noticed that I haven’t written much about all of the terrible things that have been happening in the world lately. It’s not that I don’t know or that I don’t care. I do care–it’s always there, but I can’t dwell on it all the time. I guess I care too much.

Not quite the same… but essentially on target, is this poem by Anne Sexton that I love. Here’s a bit of it:

(Different…)

“Is life something you play?
And all the time wanting to get rid of it?
And further, everyone yelling at you
to shut up. And no wonder!
People don’t like to be told
that you’re sick
and then be forced
to watch
you
come
down with the hammer.”

(But coming to the same…)

“Today life opened inside me like an egg
and there inside
after considerable digging
I found the answer.
What a bargain!
There was the sun,
her yolk moving feverishly,
tumbling her prize –
and you realize she does this daily!
I’d known she was a purifier
but I hadn’t thought
she was solid,
hadn’t known she was an answer.

[...]

I say Live, Live because of the sun,
the dream, the excitable gift.”

News bulletin

Posted on August 26, 2005
Filed Under Blather, family, music, the written word | 1 Comment

Quickly, I need to tell you all, that fall is coming. You know–in case you hadn’t noticed, I have some evidence to present.

The weather: Well, I guess it’s warmer today, but it’s been lovely. That sharp hint that I long for basically all year is creeping in, now and then. And the light is clearer.

Back to school: I am such a nerd. I have always loved back to school and all its trappings. Yes!!! I long to purchase a package of 20 pencils for 39 cents! Yes!!! I want shiny new pens! Yes!!! I did actually buy a package of 20 pencils for 39 cents!!! And then there’s new school clothes… My mother is heading back into her 3rd grade classroom to get ready for another year. I can’t say she gets the rosy glow at the thought of it that I do. For her, it’s work. But the thought of all those construction paper displays and desks arranged in little sets and safety scissors… it’s a warm fuzzy thought to me.

Another sign of fall (pretty much my favorite season, if anybody had to ask), is all the shows coming up. On the agenda so far (you deserve fair warning):

9/1 Rainer Maria/Hail Social
9/11 Of Montreal
9/30 Interpol/Boom Bip (Portland, ME)
10/5 Dead Can Dance
11/8 Broadcast

And there are several other tempting shows coming up as well. This will definitely be one of the busiest seasons for me, music-wise, in a very long time.

Oh, and did I also mention that I’m expecting the arrival of my niece this fall??

!!!!

… and by the way, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is excellent, and Motherless Brooklyn is also fantastic. Go read them both (then again, if you haven’t read any of the Harry books yet, best read them in order).

The Big Takeover

Posted on August 15, 2005
Filed Under And another thing..., music, the written word | 1 Comment

If you like your music magazines to offer good, original articles and interviews, and lots of them, check out this magazine. The current issue features Interpol (of course), Wilco, Low, Mercury Rev, Doves, Ian Brown, Chris Stamey, Neko Case, Damon and Naomi, and Tortoise, among others.

History…

Posted on August 15, 2005
Filed Under Blather, politics, the written word | Leave a Comment

Oh… and I keep forgetting to blog this…

Here’s today’s history thought. I’ve been working on some projects in American History, and as I was going through material on the Andrew Jackson era and the election of 1828, I couldn’t help but be reminded of–you guessed it–Bush. The author writes:

“Charges by Adams’s supporters that Jackson was an illiterate backwoodsman added to Jackson’s popular appeal by making him seem like an ordinary citizen. Jackson’s supporters portrayed the clash as one between the democracy of the country, on the one hand, and a lordly purse-proud aristocracy on the other. Jackson, they said, was the common man incarnate, his mind unclouded by learning, his morals simple and true, his will fierce and resolute. In contrast, Jackson’s men represented Adams as an aristocrat, a dry scholar whose learning obscured the truth, a man who could write but not fight. Much of this, of course, was wild exaggeration. Jackson was a wealthy planter, not a simple frontiersman. But it was what people wanted to hear.”

I wonder if the author consciously wrote it that way to draw that parallel.

Harry, Motherless Brooklyn, and Austin’s release

Posted on August 15, 2005
Filed Under Blather, art, daytripping, dining, family, films, friends, the written word | 2 Comments

Ezra and I have lately been engaged in our normal summertime activity of reading Harry out loud to each other. I have to admit, though, that I’ve been doing most of the reading this time. I love to read it… It’s addictive or something. We re-read Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix first–to refresh our memories since so much happens in that book–and now we are in the midst of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. I’m enjoying it immensely. In just a few hours when Ez is home and we’ve had our dinner and everything, we will likely be reading it again!

On the “what I’m reading on my own” tip, I carry Motherless Brooklyn by Jonathan Lethem with me to the gym. It’s slow going just reading it at the gym, but it’s really quite good. Ezra read one of his other books, The Fortress of Solitude, and he really liked it. I will have to read that one as well, because it sounds excellent.

We saw Rita, Brian, Cheri, Matt, and Kirsten last night… for the first time in ages (well, it was the first time I actually got to meet Matt in person!). It was really nice to see everyone. Ladies, if you’re reading this (that means you, Cheri!)–hello, dears! I don’t expect that Matt and Brian ever drop in here, but I could be wrong! Hello everyone! Anyway… a lovely rainy night in a pub was had by all. AND Ez and I were finally able to give Rita the life-size Austin Powers talking effigy we’ve been meaning to give her for about a year now. It was truly a memorable evening. (K. Bates, unfortunately, had a migrane and had to stay home. Literally, a raincheck, for we must get together soon.)

Kim’s Virginia shower is this weekend. I’ve been cooking up a storm in preparation–trying out recipes and whatnot. A little while ago I made yummy scones (not really hard to do!), and last weekend Ez and I worked on our egg salad recipe. Mmm. Food.

curled

crawling up the sky

dragonfly 4

A few weekends ago, we went to the DeCordova Sculpture Park in Lincoln with our wonderful friends Amy and Doug. It was one of the first nice days we’d had weather-wise in a long time. It was much fun to wander around the sculpture park, and I took entirely too many pictures, of course. We realized after a bit that we were all pretty dehydrated, though. Afterward we went to see Broken Flowers, which was pretty good–definitely worth seeing. And then we wandered in restlessness unable to be decisive on dinner… which was I think one part tiredness (at least, on my part), several parts too-nice-ness (everyone deferring to everyone else), one part not-knowing-too-much-about-the-area, and several parts general lack-of-decisiveness and wander-ment. Anyway, it was a lovely evening, and I was happy to be out among friends. When hunger took over, we ended up having just the nicest dinner and drinks at Laurel on Berkeley Street in Boston. Thank you (a bit late) Amy and Doug!

arches

New York Story, Part 2

Posted on March 4, 2005
Filed Under Blather, art, dining, music, photography, the written word, wide world of vacation | Leave a Comment

So back to our story…

The next morning we woke up a little late. Ezra had to deal with some work issues, so I got ready in the meantime. We had to split our stay between two rooms at the guest house, so after moving our stuff to our new room (whose fake tiger-skin rugs continued the dead animal theme), we set out in search of nourishment. We ended up back at ’snice, where I enjoyed some of the best ever oatmeal with dried fruit and a glass of yummy chai. Then we set off for the Museum of Modern Art.

Even for a Wednesday, it was quite busy. There were tour groups, students, other tourists, etc. The slate floor in the lobby looks about the same as the floor from the old building, but most other elements of the building feel new. It’s much more open, and much bigger. I was afraid I wouldn’t like the new building, but I do. I feel like I should mention the guy whose job it is to herd people through the coat check. He is firm, yet pretty friendly. He smiled while yelling at all us stupid cattle. Very efficient.

2005-03-02 005[1]

We saw so many things at the museum–it’s hard to know where to begin. They were showing some of Andy Warhol’s screen tests–3 screens side by side–in one room, along with a few other good little films. I watched a bit and saw Gerard Malanga (who basically just looks into the camera and licks his lips a few times), Dennis Hopper (who starts out just looking into the camera but ends up all over the place–he is the original ADHD patient), and several others. The drawing, printmaking, and photography exhibits were all excellent, and Ezra and I were both really pleased to discover that we like some recently acquired pieces by new artists. All is not lost in the realm of contemporary art! Huzzah! A few names that stand out in my mind are Jeff Wall, Charles LeDray (don’t think I like all of this stuff, but this is what we saw at MOMA, and it’s impressive), Josiah McElheny, and Philip-Lorca DiCorcia. And we discovered (or rediscovered) some other artists like Jacques-Henri Lartigue, Tina Modotti, Robert Frank (we saw a bunch of his works before–Ezra thinks maybe at the Art Institute in Chicago, and I love Elevator - Miami Beach), and El Lissitzky. Everytime I visit the Museum of Modern Art, I feel like I rediscover Paul Klee. It’s like his work is genius in that setting. And we saw many other good works by Calder, Warhol, Mackintosh, Miro, Cindy Sherman, Lautrec, Redon, Richter, and many many others. Ez and I were both filled to the brim with art, and we pooped out before going through the top floor. Didn’t even make it to the gift shop this time. The museum is bigger now!

So we were wiped out and filled up with art, and needing to refuel. We hit an Au Bon (unexciting, but we were too pooped to hunt down something more interesting) on 6th Avenue for a drink and snack and then slowly wandered back to our room. After resting for a bit and spiffing ourselves up, we headed out to an early dinner before the show. We were hoping for a Thai place, but it looked sketchy, so we ended up going for another Italian spot. I opted not to overdo it with the pre-show drinks this time…

radio city

Back at Radio City, we almost immediately felt that the crowd was different for the second show. It seemed older or something… maybe a little more clued in. Ezra easily managed to get his camera through the door, and we took a handful of pictures of the place and the show.

Blonde Redhead sounded a bit better on the 2nd, though they still only played four songs. It seemed like there were actually more people at the show on the 2nd who might have come out to see them, or who at least know and like them. Unfortunately for me, right before Interpol hit the stage, a big round guy planted himself in the aisle seat next to me, and a tall skinny kid took the seat in front of me. So I was surrounded, which was a bit of a disappointment, I have to say. I tried to get over it, though. The show was good–much much better than the first night. The setlist felt a lot more energetic, the band seemed more on top of things, the crowd responded better, the light show seemed bigger, the sound even seemed better. They played several live favorites, including “Length of Love,” “Say Hello to the Angels,” “Take You on a Cruise,” and of course the usual suspects like “Evil,” “NYC,” and “Obstacle 1.” I was glad they played “Hands Away” again. It’s also really good live. At one point someone actually skateboarded across the stage. Ezra says he saw this, but I missed it (probably because my view was so obscured the whole time… grrrrr). I’ve heard it was actually Blasco, the guy who plays keyboards at their live shows. I did see a kid run across the stage, press a CD into Paul’s hand, and get chased off the other side and thrown back into the crowd by security. Crazy. When did the stage jumping thing start at Interpol shows?

Interpol

So I’m looking forward to seeing them this coming Wednesday in Boston. My seats at the Orpheum look decent, and I feel like the Radio City shows, as good as they were (esp. the second night), were sort of like teasers. Maybe it was being in New York, or the bigger venue, or a combination of lots of factors, but I kept fighting off the feeling that the first two times I saw them were just a little more fun because they were more intimate. But I hate to complain.

After the show we headed back to our room. We thought about getting a coffee, but nothing good presented itself and it was quite cold.

retrievers

On Thursday morning we had breakfast at a cute diner called the Bus Stop Cafe. The food was OK–not great–and the service was insanely fast. I barely had time to figure out what I wanted before it was in front of me. I do not exaggerate. On the walk to the diner we passed a setup for a movie shoot on the corner. There were no signs of any stars that I could see, but there were a bunch of photographers with crazy massive lenses, and we overheard one guy say something like, “I’m not chasing after Lucy Liu.” Hm…

2005-03-03 009[1]

Our plan was to walk over to 6th Ave. and check out a board game store, but we couldn’t find it. I did have fun wandering through an art supply store near The New School. Then we got on the subway to find B&H, which was recommended to me as the place to go for camera equipment. Mainly, I wanted to see what they could tell me about the new smaller Canon Digital Rebel that’s coming out (not much). It was cool just to go there, though. It’s massive–covers a large corner of a city block. They sell all kinds of electronics. Apparently, it’s Jewish owned and largely Jewish operated. The store is closed Friday afternoons, Saturdays, and Jewish holidays, and I’d say about 80 percent of the staff were wearing yarmulkes. The place is set up almost like a Service Merchandise or something. You tell a sales person what you want, after looking at the display samples, and they send an order back into the stockroom. Your items are placed in a bin which travels on a conveyor overhead through the store and up to the pick-up area in the front. After you pay, you can pick up your purchase. Ez found a new case for his camera and we set off again.

gw bridge

Suddenly we realized our trip was drawing to a close. What to do in our last few hours there? We did a lot of walking in the cold, again looking for the elusive non-Starbucks coffee shop and again having no luck. We ended up at Gotham Book Mart. They’ve just moved to a wood-filled location on 46th Street, just a block or two over from their old location. There were people treating the wood upstairs, so a scent of some semi-toxic wood cleaner/polish filled the place. I have just purchased so many books, so I forced myself to hold back, but Ezra found a few that look very good. The same woman was working the desk this time as the last time we visited New York in September 2003.

…And then it was a rush to grab lunch, get back to the guest house to grab our bags, and then get up to the bus station. We got there just in time, and here we are… back in Boston!

I think the visit energized me overall. I like to be somewhat busy. I really like being around art and creativity. There are still things about the pace in New York that I don’t like, but part of it might be the fact that I am always rushing when I’m there because I never know when I’ll be back. Hopefully, we can get down there again when the weather gets a little warmer, so we can walk around more. Of course, then everyone else will be thinking the same thing and the streets will be packed. Alas.

February does it again

Posted on February 17, 2005
Filed Under Blather, friends, the written word | 2 Comments

A little like last year did, this February has brought some melancholy times. I think I am dealing with them better because A) the weather has been sort of sunny the last few days, B) the major bad thing that has happened is very bad–but it’s not happening in conjunction with 15 other bad things, C) I can stop and breathe/get enough sleep/etc. because my job is manageable. Still, despite the wonderfulness of Ezra’s birthday and Valentine’s Day, February can be a tough month.

My friend Maureen, who I have known since 4th or 5th grade, had a little book of her poems published. They’re so wonderful!! Yay Maureen! You can order her book here. Amazon claims it’s not yet released, but I got my copy… I guess directly from the publisher.

Between the solemn days of February, the inspiration of seeing my friend’s work in print, and having a little time with my current job situation… I was driven to actually write something yesterday. I haven’t written much resembling poetry in the last few years. I’d write things here and there on random scraps of paper or in random notebooks, but this felt a little different. I like it–it helped/helps me to work through the things I am thinking and feeling and experiencing. But whether anyone will ever see it, or most of what I write, I can’t say. Maybe it’s enough that I write at all.

A New Murakami Novel!!!

Posted on January 10, 2005
Filed Under Blather, the written word | Leave a Comment

I just discovered that there’s a new Murakami novel!! It’s due to be published in the U.S. on January 18th. Ooo ooo! Here’s a preview from the BBC.

Looks like there are many other reviews of the book online. I am just skimming them, myself–don’t want to ruin it. His books all have a bunch of common threads, it seems, yet most manage to be pretty unique in their own special ways, too. I’m anxious to read this one.

« go back — keep looking »

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Japandroids-The House That Heaven Built 

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