In light of the coronavirus, I'm writing a song about quarantining, social distancing, people's disregard of it, etc. In retrospect, it might just sort of suck, and the melody in the verses might be a little too similar to "Don't Let Me Get Me." Oh, what the heck? It's not like I really have better things to do. Although I could be working on that novel I really should be working on right now, or catching up on reading for my abnormal psychology and political science classes ... Dang, now I feel all guilty. Of course, what I'd actually be doing is watching Alias or The West Wing, or adding to my Spotify "Coronavirus Sucks!" playlist (what? it's an inherited tendency - blame my dad), or playing with that cool little circuit maze game I have, or beating my brother repetitively at Boggle (although sometimes he wins, too)... OK, now I feel even guiltier, but for a different reason. The one thing that messes with your head more than solitary isolation is being isolated WITH your family!
Wednesday, March 18, 2020
Tuesday, March 17, 2020
Why I Admire Bernie AND Joe: A Respectful Political Reverie
Some might say that liking Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders simultaneously is impossible - like loving both The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi. The thing is, though, I liked both of those movies, and I like both of these candidates. So, here goes: why this future voter (and maybe even future politician - we'll see) respects both the Democratic candidates amidst all the divisive social media rhetoric that seeks to position them as polar opposites. I'll tell you what positive qualities stick out to me in both candidates (although any implication that the other candidate lacks said qualities is unintended) and what led me to notice these things. I will NOT be discussing my choice as to which candidate I support within this particular post, because this examination is meant to dish out equal praise to both candidates. Fans of Joe, please try to understand why Sanders deserves your respect. Bernie Bros, please try to understand why Biden deserves your respect.
Bernie Sanders
Bernie has, with minimal exception, stuck to his values for decades. With all that political pressure going around, that is pretty damn impressive. Another thing that is striking is Bernie's fire. The dude is 78, yet more emphatic and intense than many who are decades younger. He appeals to those who are decades younger on huge levels, which is no easy feat for an old white guy. His ideas, whether or not you agree with them, are bold in a good way because they've drawn national attention to important issues. Paying for college and healthcare sucks, and coming from someone who's watched my parents slog through student loan debt and haggle with pharmacists about the insurance company's refusal to cover the whole month of doses for my brother's anxiety medication, it is a really big deal that Bernie is working so hard to make things better. He owns the title of democratic socialist even though the term has damaged his chances of appealing to Cold War-traumatized older voters, but it's hard not to admire him for never going back on things, whether or not you agree with those things. He's shone throughout the debates, too, still going strong and sticking to his message when most people his age would be in bed and even candidates thirty years younger are starting to run out of steam by the end of the night. He has sworn to pull back the reins on big corporations with too much power. He would make a good president for these times by leading a revolution, getting those young people out to vote and fighting for that big change. These are the primary reasons that I respect Bernie Sanders.
Joe Biden
Joe Biden is one of the most genuinely caring people ever to fill the role of "politician." (Now, as I stated before, I am not trying to imply here that Bernie is not empathetic. Rather, I'm pointing out the traits in each candidate that stick out to me MOST.) But the truth is, when this thing we call the 2020 Democratic presidential race started out, I didn't recognize this. And months later, after the primaries in Iowa and New Hampshire AND Nevada, I still failed to see the appeal of Joe Biden. But then came this golden town hall in South Carolina where Biden showed his true colors. I don't know how many people watched it - I don't think it ever got posted on YouTube - but he was feeling and personal and understanding. He is not necessarily the status quo or an average Joe, especially now that he's endorsing free college and improvements on our (frankly atrocious) student loan forgiveness system. Flip-flopper, some might say, but flexibility and loyalty both have their pros and cons. And while Bernie Sanders' experience shouldn't be denied, Biden has been in politics for about a century. Hell, not only was he in the Senate before my birth, he was in the Senate before my mom's birth! Being vice president to Barack Obama is not exactly a bad feather to have in your cap when running for a Democratic nomination, either. He would make a good president for these times by leading a revolution of empathy (which we've been so short of in politics lately, mostly thanks to Trump's presidential endorsement of bullying on a daily basis), bringing stability back and setting the stage for that big change. These are the primary reasons that I respect Joe Biden.
At this point, I will NOT tell you which of these men I support. I would like to at least maintain the appearance of an impartial political commentator throughout these turbulent times. (Well, I'm not impartial when it comes to Trump, but that's because listening to him speak makes me want to vomit and I'm determined to get the jerk the hell out of not only the Oval Office, but public office and, if possible, the public eye.) I'll pull a page out of the books of some of the political figures I admire most - such as Cory Booker and Barack Obama - and point out that we have more in common than we think, so we should stop arguing so much and keep our eyes on the prize. Still, though, you can't really like The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi equally...
Bernie Sanders
Bernie has, with minimal exception, stuck to his values for decades. With all that political pressure going around, that is pretty damn impressive. Another thing that is striking is Bernie's fire. The dude is 78, yet more emphatic and intense than many who are decades younger. He appeals to those who are decades younger on huge levels, which is no easy feat for an old white guy. His ideas, whether or not you agree with them, are bold in a good way because they've drawn national attention to important issues. Paying for college and healthcare sucks, and coming from someone who's watched my parents slog through student loan debt and haggle with pharmacists about the insurance company's refusal to cover the whole month of doses for my brother's anxiety medication, it is a really big deal that Bernie is working so hard to make things better. He owns the title of democratic socialist even though the term has damaged his chances of appealing to Cold War-traumatized older voters, but it's hard not to admire him for never going back on things, whether or not you agree with those things. He's shone throughout the debates, too, still going strong and sticking to his message when most people his age would be in bed and even candidates thirty years younger are starting to run out of steam by the end of the night. He has sworn to pull back the reins on big corporations with too much power. He would make a good president for these times by leading a revolution, getting those young people out to vote and fighting for that big change. These are the primary reasons that I respect Bernie Sanders.
Joe Biden
Joe Biden is one of the most genuinely caring people ever to fill the role of "politician." (Now, as I stated before, I am not trying to imply here that Bernie is not empathetic. Rather, I'm pointing out the traits in each candidate that stick out to me MOST.) But the truth is, when this thing we call the 2020 Democratic presidential race started out, I didn't recognize this. And months later, after the primaries in Iowa and New Hampshire AND Nevada, I still failed to see the appeal of Joe Biden. But then came this golden town hall in South Carolina where Biden showed his true colors. I don't know how many people watched it - I don't think it ever got posted on YouTube - but he was feeling and personal and understanding. He is not necessarily the status quo or an average Joe, especially now that he's endorsing free college and improvements on our (frankly atrocious) student loan forgiveness system. Flip-flopper, some might say, but flexibility and loyalty both have their pros and cons. And while Bernie Sanders' experience shouldn't be denied, Biden has been in politics for about a century. Hell, not only was he in the Senate before my birth, he was in the Senate before my mom's birth! Being vice president to Barack Obama is not exactly a bad feather to have in your cap when running for a Democratic nomination, either. He would make a good president for these times by leading a revolution of empathy (which we've been so short of in politics lately, mostly thanks to Trump's presidential endorsement of bullying on a daily basis), bringing stability back and setting the stage for that big change. These are the primary reasons that I respect Joe Biden.
At this point, I will NOT tell you which of these men I support. I would like to at least maintain the appearance of an impartial political commentator throughout these turbulent times. (Well, I'm not impartial when it comes to Trump, but that's because listening to him speak makes me want to vomit and I'm determined to get the jerk the hell out of not only the Oval Office, but public office and, if possible, the public eye.) I'll pull a page out of the books of some of the political figures I admire most - such as Cory Booker and Barack Obama - and point out that we have more in common than we think, so we should stop arguing so much and keep our eyes on the prize. Still, though, you can't really like The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi equally...
Friday, February 14, 2020
Tuesday, January 7, 2020
WHY is Alias not available to stream anywhere? WHY??? I own the entire series on DVD, but the first two discs of Season 2 both mysteriously refused to work last night after years of smooth operation. Consequently, we had to purchase those episodes again. Either the library needs to get more copies of the DVDs (they were all checked out, as if a bunch of people suddenly thought, "Oh, it's early January? Time to binge-watch Alias"), or Disney+ needs to integrate more material from the many companies it now owns. Alias is an ABC show, after all, and what about the X-Men movies? They were made by 21st Century Fox, which Disney also now owns.
Alias is an espionage thriller with a sci-fi edge that, despite receiving less attention than J.J. Abrams' later project Lost, is frankly awesome. Less than halfway through the first season, I realized I was totally hooked, and haven't looked back since. So many reasons that everyone can find something to like here: quite likely Jennifer Garner's best acting work, a kick-butt female spy as the lead character, Michael Giacchino's first major score (for you music nerds), Quentin Tarantino as a guest star (which I thought went over well even though I have never seen any of his movies), edge-of-your-seat cliffhangers at the end of literally almost every episode, plot twists, emotional drama, even the occasional moment of comedic brilliance. Oh, yeah, and if you're into spectacle, there are lots of explosions and fistfights, and Jennifer Garner does many of her own stunts. And even though it acts as the ideal escapist TV show in the action-adventure genre, many of its darker elements can't help but seem all too real. So, yeah, you should check it out - if you can find it anywhere. Hey, maybe SD-6 encrypted my DVDs...
Alias is an espionage thriller with a sci-fi edge that, despite receiving less attention than J.J. Abrams' later project Lost, is frankly awesome. Less than halfway through the first season, I realized I was totally hooked, and haven't looked back since. So many reasons that everyone can find something to like here: quite likely Jennifer Garner's best acting work, a kick-butt female spy as the lead character, Michael Giacchino's first major score (for you music nerds), Quentin Tarantino as a guest star (which I thought went over well even though I have never seen any of his movies), edge-of-your-seat cliffhangers at the end of literally almost every episode, plot twists, emotional drama, even the occasional moment of comedic brilliance. Oh, yeah, and if you're into spectacle, there are lots of explosions and fistfights, and Jennifer Garner does many of her own stunts. And even though it acts as the ideal escapist TV show in the action-adventure genre, many of its darker elements can't help but seem all too real. So, yeah, you should check it out - if you can find it anywhere. Hey, maybe SD-6 encrypted my DVDs...
CRITICAL UPDATE!!!!!!!! - Alias is now on Amazon Prime! I'm not a fan of lining Bezos' pockets, but this show is worth it. Stop reading my fanatical rants about it and watch the freaking thing, please!
Thursday, December 19, 2019
Dark Phoenix: A Belated Actual Review
I should have reviewed this right after seeing it to warn the world against viewing it, but now that I've had time (a lot of time) to cool off and reflect on it, I will be slightly kinder in my analysis.
This movie was a cake made either by a novice baker or someone who forgot to put their reading glasses on when looking over the ingredient list. Character arcs that could and should have been compelling and relatable fell flat, replaced before the 30-minute mark by heavily cliched body-snatching, shape-shifting aliens. I wish that were only a joke.
And speaking of jokes, Dark Phoenix falls far below even the widely disliked Apocalypse because it's almost totally joyless. Apocalypse was by few means a great movie, but the filmmakers at least seem to have recognized that, throwing in a cheeky self-referential joke or two about its failure to live up to its two awe-inspiring predecessors (see "The third one's always the worst"). Dark Phoenix, on the other hand, seems to think itself well-done, taking itself more seriously than even most good movies should.
Additionally, it fails to resonate on an emotional level, perhaps because of the way it sets up, proceeds to ignore for most of the film, and hastily does a shoddy job of resolving the aforementioned character arcs. It started off good, but all I felt watching the final two-thirds of this movie was a profound sense of utter disappointment.
The previous X-Men movies have been known for handling complex real-world issues: most notably discrimination, but also trying to help a friend engaging in self-destructive behaviors, the extent of humankind's ability to influence the future, drug addiction, etc., etc. I could go on for ages. Dark Phoenix makes little attempt to strike a thematic chord throughout most of the movie, and tries perhaps too hard at the beginning and end. The metaphorical cake was quite under-mixed in this regard. The trouble is, I like X-Men so much - better than Avengers (sorry, Avengers) - partially because it's so socially conscious, but with all the jacked-up stuff going on in our world today, this installment failed to really address any of it.
Dark Phoenix's primary saving grace was its brilliant, star-studded cast, except that the cast failed to save it. Let that be a lesson for the ages: you can have great actors and actresses, some truly great predecessors, decent special effects and action sequences, and an overblown Hollywood budget, but if the script is terrible, you're toast. (Totally random fun fact: this particular slang usage of the word "toast" actually originated from the original Ghostbusters, a much better movie that definitively hits the mark when it comes to having a sense of fun.)
One review from salon.com states that Dark Phoenix only really has value as a teaching tool for aspiring and novice filmmakers of what not to do. I think that's an accurate analysis. I spent the drive home from the theatre thinking that I could have made a better movie than that, which is a testament to the sad failure it is. I had high hopes, I really did. All the ingredients were at hand, but some got wasted, some were forgotten, and some new ones were added. The aliens were like adding paprika to the cake. Some people might like it, but um...
Yeah, just um. I've given you all of my takeaways. Hope to blog again soon - before next July.
This movie was a cake made either by a novice baker or someone who forgot to put their reading glasses on when looking over the ingredient list. Character arcs that could and should have been compelling and relatable fell flat, replaced before the 30-minute mark by heavily cliched body-snatching, shape-shifting aliens. I wish that were only a joke.
And speaking of jokes, Dark Phoenix falls far below even the widely disliked Apocalypse because it's almost totally joyless. Apocalypse was by few means a great movie, but the filmmakers at least seem to have recognized that, throwing in a cheeky self-referential joke or two about its failure to live up to its two awe-inspiring predecessors (see "The third one's always the worst"). Dark Phoenix, on the other hand, seems to think itself well-done, taking itself more seriously than even most good movies should.
Additionally, it fails to resonate on an emotional level, perhaps because of the way it sets up, proceeds to ignore for most of the film, and hastily does a shoddy job of resolving the aforementioned character arcs. It started off good, but all I felt watching the final two-thirds of this movie was a profound sense of utter disappointment.
The previous X-Men movies have been known for handling complex real-world issues: most notably discrimination, but also trying to help a friend engaging in self-destructive behaviors, the extent of humankind's ability to influence the future, drug addiction, etc., etc. I could go on for ages. Dark Phoenix makes little attempt to strike a thematic chord throughout most of the movie, and tries perhaps too hard at the beginning and end. The metaphorical cake was quite under-mixed in this regard. The trouble is, I like X-Men so much - better than Avengers (sorry, Avengers) - partially because it's so socially conscious, but with all the jacked-up stuff going on in our world today, this installment failed to really address any of it.
Dark Phoenix's primary saving grace was its brilliant, star-studded cast, except that the cast failed to save it. Let that be a lesson for the ages: you can have great actors and actresses, some truly great predecessors, decent special effects and action sequences, and an overblown Hollywood budget, but if the script is terrible, you're toast. (Totally random fun fact: this particular slang usage of the word "toast" actually originated from the original Ghostbusters, a much better movie that definitively hits the mark when it comes to having a sense of fun.)
One review from salon.com states that Dark Phoenix only really has value as a teaching tool for aspiring and novice filmmakers of what not to do. I think that's an accurate analysis. I spent the drive home from the theatre thinking that I could have made a better movie than that, which is a testament to the sad failure it is. I had high hopes, I really did. All the ingredients were at hand, but some got wasted, some were forgotten, and some new ones were added. The aliens were like adding paprika to the cake. Some people might like it, but um...
Yeah, just um. I've given you all of my takeaways. Hope to blog again soon - before next July.
Wednesday, July 3, 2019
Dark Phoenix - What's That Again?
Seriously, ignore my previous post. If you like X-Men, skip out on this one. It'll just screw up your opinion of it. If you don't like it, don't waste your time. Why, oh WHY, didn't someone suggest leaving out the aliens?
Thursday, June 6, 2019
X-Men (Again)
Today = the last day before the official release of a movie I definitely haven't been waiting for since last April, back when it was supposed to be released in February: Dark Phoenix, the blockbuster of the next week or two (until Toy Story 462 4, because life is just UNFAIR like that). Fans of X-Men will definitely be going to see this one, as will fans of Marvel in general. Also, if you liked Glass (although I haven't seen it...), James McAvoy is in this one, so there's your reason. Once I see the movie, I will post a review, but first I'm going to rewatch Days of Future Past, just because.
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