Three Movies, One Day...

Yesterday, was a LONG DAY for Shane, as I watched THREE movies!!!

First up, my buddy Craig and I caught an afternoon showing of "Syrianna" at the NEW Keystone Arts Cinema that Jason manages. The theatre is NICE! I like it a lot, unfortunetly, the movie bored me, and I found myself napping at times. It wasn't that it was a BAD movie, because it wasn't. It was just very slow, very political, and very slow. Did I mention it being slow? Okay, it was SLOW. Slow = SLEEP for Shane.

Then, I came to work and built up "King Kong" and watched it around 8:00pm.
The movie was about 45 minutes TOO LONG.
The first hour of the film, could have been trimmed down by 15 minutes, there's just SO MUCH on the boat to the island that is not important.
Then, from the time Ann gets taken by Kong, until she's found, run roughly 1:30, it SHOULD have only been an hour. There's SO MUCH extra stuff that doesn't progress the story, it's just there to impress the viewers, and it bored me.
The third act was almost perfect. There's some SLOW moments on top of the Empire State Building, but aside from that the third act was the most enjoyable.

So, we did a midnight show of "King Kong" (I did NOT feel like watching this with the public, which is why I watched it early, alone...) so, since I was STUCK at work until 3:30am, I decided to make the best of it and watch "Just Friends", which I've wanted to see for a while, but never made the time to. I REALLY enjoyed "Just Friends", I found myself laughing at loud, alone in the theatre. It was a good time. There's some plot points that are OUT THERE, but it's not something that ruins the film, it's expected in this type of movie. It's worth watching, Ryan Reynolds is too funny.

So, I got home from work at 4:00am, then got a call from Preston at 8:00am, telling me that him and Craig had decided to go to Caesar's Casino today, after Preston does the recording, and wanted to know if I wanted to go. I told him to call me back when he was done with the recording, and I had every intention of saying "no" and going back to sleep. Then, I realized that I had a coupon for $63 bucks from them, and it expires next week. So, I figured: I should go and get this money, and play "for free" (technically) and have a good time before work tonight. So, when Preston called back, I agreed to go, if they cam and picked me up. I got ready, napped on the couch until they showed up, then slept most of the way down. I did okay, came home with a little extra cash, which should go towards a Christmas present, or two. Plus, I got to play a couple hours of cards, and it was a BLAST. I had some nice people at my table, and we talked sports (Pacers/Colts) the whole time.

After poker, Craig went up to play Caribbean Stud (which I'm going to try next time, it looks like A LOT of fun, and Craig doubled his $100 pretty easily). Now, if I was smart, I would have played $5 on Red 23, at the roulette table next to us. I RARELY EVER play roulette, and when I do, I only play ONE number: Red 23. Why? Michael Jordan. It's my lucky number. (Not really, since I've never won with it, but today would have been differently). With in 30 minutes, Red 23 hit FIVE TIMES on the roulette table. Which means, the first time, $5 would have become $175 (hitting the exact number in roulette pays 35:1). And if I would have continued with it for 30 minutes, FIVE times would have been $875. But, who knew? And after the third time I thought there was NO WAY it wouls ever hit again. Mabybe next time I'll try it... Craig ended up taking some of his Caribbean Stud winnings and did play roulette, putting some random amounts down on Black 4, Red 23, and Black 35 (the two numbers on each side of Red 23) And he hit on the Black 35, making $175. He gambled a little bit more away, and then we were out the door. GOOD DAY for Craig, and I had a lot of fun being the support after I stopped for the day. It's fun to go, even when I decide to stop gambling. So, I came home up a small amount, Craig come home up a good deal, and Preston broke even and QUIT for the day. Even though he kept going over to three card poker, he never sat down! What control! I HATE coming out even. I'd rather tell people I lost money, than broke even. But, that's just me.

Now, I'm at work. TIRED. Even though I slept half of the drive home. And if we sell for "King Kong" tonight, I'm here until 1:47am! Maybe I'll watch another film tonight.

A History of Cell Phones...

Qualcomm QCP-1960. July 1998.
This is where it all started. I was 18 years old, and cell phones were NOT the "hip" thing yet, but I still wanted one. I was at the Indiana State Fair, and got flagged down by a salesman. I eventually applied and got approved for a phone, and walked out with it that day. "That was so easy!" I thought. Late 1998 was probably the real "BOOM" in cell phones, and by 1999, most people were beginning to carry them. I still feel that I was one of the first "common-folk" to carry a cell phone, and I needed it, because I was never at home, and always out and about. I did also have a pager at the time, but it was annoying attempting to find a payphone anytime someone paged me. So, I took the step up and got a cell phone. I've been hooked ever since. I was with Ameritech on this phone, they later became another company, who later because Cingular. When I moved to California, I left the phone with my brother, and he finished out the last 6 monthes on my plan.

Samsung SCH-3500. March 2001.
While living in Cali, I made the bold move to buy a new cell phone, and this time I got on Sprint, and I've been with them ever since March of 2001. I'll be going on five years, in just a couple of months. This was a cheap phone, I think around $100. I liked it at the time, because of display being visable all the time, and the angle when it was open seemed to fit well with my head. It was also rather funny, because when I moved back to Indy, I learned a friend of mine here had the same phone, and later that year when Sergio (from Cali) got on Sprint, he told me he got the same phone as I had. It seems that was a popular phone at the time!

LG TP1100. February 2002.
Eventually, I got tired of how BIG the SCH-3500 was. In early 2002, smaller seemed be the "in" thing, and lots of really small phones were being released. So, I went to Best Buy and picked up the TP1100, because of its size. It was nice and small, a little thick, but still didn't carry the heft and bulk of the SCH-3500. I also liked the 4-way navigation bar, as opposed to the 2-way of my previous phone.


LG 5350. December 2002.
Yep, the TP1100 only last 10 months. In December, I was asked to be a part of a Christmas play at Kristen's church, and during the performance, someone snuck into the dressing room and stole a number of items from a number of people. Wallets, Cell Phones, etc... were taken. Luckily, my parents helped me out to quickly purchase a new phone and I picked the 5350. It was AWESOME! It was my first phone with a color display! The phone was blue! (My favorite color) The buttons had a blue glow, instead of a green. And the exterior Caller ID was also blue. It was COOL! Plus, this was the first phone I had that allowed me assign multiple phone numbers to one contact. Previously, every number I entered had to have a different name attached to it. Now, I could have one contact, with a wokr number, a home number, a cell number, and even a pager number. All together. It was cool! MAJOR step up the cell phone ladder.

Sanyo 8100. June 2003.
So, the 5350 lasted even shorter than the TP1100. Kristen and I were in Florida, standing in the middle of the ocean, and I got the brilliant idea to call my parents. Pull the phone out of my pocket, flip it open with one hand, and... OH!!! The phone flies out of my hand, and lands in the middle of the ocean. Needless to say, it was dead. It was beyond dead. It wouldn't power up, it wouldn't do anything. It's life was gone. So, the next morning, Kristen and I spent 8 hours, driving ALL OVER Ft. Lauderdale looking for the BLUE version of the 8100. Most Radio Shacks, Sprint stores, and Circuit City stores had a ton of silvers, but I wanted the blue. Finally, at around 5pm, we were directed to a Circuit City, where a blue phone was on hold for me. They only had two left, and the gentlemen at the store we were at called them, they physically found the phone and put my name on it. Finally, I had the phone I searched all day for! It had some awesome features, and most importantly, it was my first camera phone. I loved taking pictures with it, and sending them to various people. Eventually, my parents, my brother and Kristen would all eventually get camera phones, so that we coule all send pictures to each other. This was also the first phone I had with full color exterior display, which would show pictures of people when they were calling. What a step up!
NOTE: Pictured above is the silver model of the phone, I actually had the blue model, but could not find any blue pictures.

Sanyo 5500/VM-4500. December 2004.
The 8100 was a good phone, and lasted a long time. However, around Christmas last year, the 8100 started to lose its mind. The vibration alert stopped. The ringer was whack, sometimes it would work, sometimes it wouldn't. The exterior display was on again/off again. So, for Christmas, Mom and Dad gave me some cash that I used to pick up the Sanyo 5500. It was basically an upgrade of the 8100. Matt, Kristen's brother, had this phone and I always liked it, so when the time came to get a new one, it's the one I picked. I stepped up from a camera phone to a video camera phone (although, I didn't get a lot of use out of the video camera, it was still fun to use...). I also got the blue keypad back, speakerphone, and a multi-colored LED alert. It had seven colors, that you could program for different things. Whe someone would call me - it would do a "rainbow" of the colors. When I got a voicemail/text message it would blink blue. When an unkown number called me, it would blink red. It was COOL. Plus, there were 5 LED lights used as the flash for the camera. It was some high-end equipment, and I loved the phone.

Samsung A-900. December 2005.
The new love of my life. Since 2003, I've been watching a Motorola RAZR phone. I can remember that first commercial for the phone, when it was falling through the sky, slicing through the words describing its features, then slamming straight up into the ground. It was SO COOL! And I wanted one SO BAD! A nice slim and trim phone. I even toyed with the notion of leaving Sprint, to get a RAZR phone. I'm glad I held out. I now own one of the COOLEST cell phones ever. It's insanely thin, and small (same dimensions as a credit card) and does things I never imagined a cell phone can do. It's got a small hard drive which stored music on it, and can be played through a media player on the phone. It streams video from the internet, including movie trailers. It has a 1.3 mega-pixel camera/videocamera with zoom. Speakerphone, advanced voice dialing, and a SHARP beautiful interior display, along with a very nice exterior display. It's REALLY the coolest and best phone I've ever owned. I'm happy I made the investment, and I'm happy that I waited it out, until Spring came through with such an amazing phone. It's REALLY COOL! And makes me a happy camper.

Do I Like Peanuts?

Just in case anyone was wondering if I liked Peanuts, Charlie Brown, Snoopy, or Christmas... I thought I'd share some pictures from around my apartment...


On top of the TV sits Snoopy and Charlie Brown in train cars. These were from Whitman's candies last year, there was a set of four, and I seem to be missing two of them (I'm pretty sure I've got them all somewhere...). On the right, is a Hallmark ornament from last year. I plays "O Christmastree" when you push the button.



On top of the DVD Rack sits a Charlie Brown Bobblehead (with his poor little tree...). Next to that is this year's Hallmark Waterglobe. It's motion sensative, so when you shake it up, it begins playing "O Christmastree" and the tree on the front lights up, along with Snoopy's doghouse (A gift from my mother a couple of weeks ago, THANKS MOM!). In the back are plush Charlie Brown and Snoopy figures. We added some reindeer antlers to Snoopy, and I'm trying to find a small Santa hat for Charlie Brown.



My Peanuts "action figures" (although, honestly, they don't do a lot of action, but it sounds better than a doll...). The top row is a mixed collection from the "A Boy Named Charlie Brown" set and the "You're an All-Star, Charlie Brown" set. I bought whatever I could find, and nowhere ever seemed to carry the ones I needed to finish either sets. Ebay, someday... The middle row is the ALMOST the ENTIRE SET of "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" (I'm missing Schroeder and his piano with candlestick from this set). Finally, the bottom row is the ENTIRE SET of "A Charlie Brown Christmas" including the alternate "Director" Charlie Brown.



My mother bought this ornament for me last year. It's Linus giving Snoopy a gift. (It's a little blurry, but that's Snoopy sitting on top of his doghouse). A Christmas light gets stuck inside the doghouse (from the bottom) and it lights up the words "Merry Christmas". REALLY COOL ornament!



Kristen's mother bought this ornament for me a couple of years back. Snoopy and Charlie Brown sleding. It too is on the tree. I've got another series of Whitman's ornaments on my tree (about six more total) but all their pictures turned out too blurry, and I'm too lazy to go down and take any more pictures tonight. Maybe at a later date...



Sparky even gets in the holiday spirit with this Special Christmas Season Treat Jar. His standard one is Snoopy's doghouse, so it was an easy decision to get him this when we saw it.



There's one final ornament from this year that I need to hurry up and buy. It's this year's musical ornament (see on top of the TV for last year's musical ornament). Hopefully, I'll pick it up this weekend...

So, if there was any doubt, I hope I've SQUASHED IT, and proven that I LOVE PEANUTS! And I REALLY LOVE CHRISTMAS!

Castleton Arts

Monday was a sad day. Realizing that Castleton Arts was really closed. Dione has been gone for a couple of weeks, and that kind of set things in motion, but it wasn't until Monday that it hit like a ton of bricks. And yesterday, AMC was to turn over the keys to the building to Simon. It's tough. This building has been a part of my life for the past 7 years, and it's tough to think that I'll never set foot in the building again. People who know me, know that I don't deal well with change. And the fact that this has to change, is really hard for me. My "career" in Film Exhibition began in this building in December of 1998. Jason L. Maier and I randomly ran into each other one night, because of my friend Brandy, who was friends with Jason's friend Joe. All of us hung out, and Jason and I decided to try hanging out some more. Eventually, I started coming up to Castleton Arts, where Jason was working. From the beginning, he started teaching me how to thread films, build and tear films, and I just soaked it all up. Then, in January, he got me a job at the AMC Clearwater theatre. I still spent a lot of time at Castleton Arts, hanging out with Jason, and sometimes working for them (off the clock). I got to be really good friends with Dione and Dave (the two managers) and formed some bonds with people that I'll have forever. In the fall of 1999, Jason and I began writing a script that would turn into "Consternate" in the booth of Castleton Arts. On that same day, GWAM Guys was formed - in Castleton Arts. So, my "career" in Film Exhibition was started in that building, and my "career" as an indie film maker started there also.

This is a picture of Jason and I going over the script, and getting ready to film in the Men's Bathroom at Castleton Arts. In the spring of 2000 through the entire summer, we spent many nights, after closing, filming out film. Some nights we had as many as 15 people running around inside and outside, doing things for the film. The entire opening scene of the film takes place in Castleton Arts, as well as three or four more scenes throughout the film. We'd film a couple hours one night, a couple hours another night, and just constantly go back and film when schedules allowed. In the film, if you watch the posters on the walls, you can see the span of time it took to film. In almost every scene the posters are different, and sometimes change between shots and angles. Continuity was not something that was high priority back in the beginning... We used the lobby, the men's restroom, Cinema 2, and a couple of outside walls. Jason L. Maier even hung over the side of the roof, to get an overhead shot for the film.

In December of 2000, we premiered our first film "Consternate" at Castleton Arts! The same theatre that we spent months filming in! We had close to 160 people show up, and had a very successful response to our first attempt at a film. As proud as I am of the film, I am glad to see how far we have come in our productions. But still, I'll always remember the night that GWAM Guys packed Cinema 2 to show their own film! It was an amazing experience.

Over the years, we used parts of Castleton Arts for locations in numerous films. For "Consternate" we used basically the entire theatre (as it was the backdrop for the scenes). For Ryan Tungate's "The Chrome Lady", we used the upstairs hallway, some close-ups of the doors, and the stairwell going upstairs from Cinema 3. In "Escape" we cleaned and reorganized one of the upstairs storage rooms, and turned it into Little George's office. Kristen and I spent a couple of hours on two seperate days, moving and reorganizing items in the room, to make it look like an office. I'm really happy of how it turned out looking in the film. For Jason L. Maier's "To Change the World", we used the upstairs hallway again for some of the key scenes between Lee Vidal and Drew Stafford. The thin hallways and tight corners worked perfectly in the scenes. Although we never filming in Castleton Arts for "Crazy About You", we did use the lobby to hold our auditions for the film, as well as our cast read through. The lobby provided a nice large and open space for us to gather a large group.

Many Thanksgivings I found myself spending some time at Castleton Arts. Even before we started our annual poker game, Jason and I would still hang out on Thanksgiving night, and he often was working at Castleton Arts. So, I would find myself there, before we found someone to hang out until Best Buy time (often Denny's). Dione and I shared a passion for the Christmas Season, and I can remember at least three years that I helped her put up the Christmas decorations in Castleton's lobby. I remember shopping with her at Target for all kinds of decorations to use. The Castleton Arts Christmas Party was also one of my highlights of the season. Spending a night in the lobby with a large group of friends, exchanging presents, and enjoying the season. I still remember the night I changed my mind about Troy. It happened one year at the Castleton Arts Christmas Party (up until then, I didn't care for him... something about his attitude, we didn't click right away... probably because of how much alike we were), so anyways, after the Christmas Party, Jason, Zach, Troy and I decided to play football in the lobby. Jason and I against Zach and Troy, and I don't remember exactly what happened, but at some point I just realized: Troy is pretty cool. And we've been good friends ever since. In recent years, I didn't spend as much time at Castleton Arts as I used to, and that's been my fault, and I kind of have regrets about it. I never really realized it wasn't going to be there.

Now, I can't go sit in the office with Dave Lichty, and talk for HOURS about films. I can't go sit on the couches and talk to Scott Grow, while playing Scrabble. I'll never get to help Dione decorate for the Christmas Season. We'll never get to show another film in Castleton Arts, or shoot any part of any film there, ever again. Now, all I've got is 7 years of memories about how that place changed my life, and turned me into the person I am today. So many late nights were spent hanging out at Castleton Arts. So many years of working the Heartland Film Festival at the theatre. I remember working it in 1999, when it was close to nothing, and watching every year as they expanded and got more and more screens of the theatre, until they finally took over the theatre for an entire week. I wonder what's going to happen with Heartland next year? There's no more "Let's meet at Castleton Arts and just take one car..."

It's a tough time right now. It's too big of a change. And I feel like I've lost so much. Growing up SUCKS! I wish things never had to change. I guess this is just one of many things going on that need to force me to move on in my life... I can't live in the past. No matter how good that past was.

"Serenity" Review and Thoughts

DISCLAIMER:
If you're not a Browncoat, and/or haven't seen the movie yet, it would probably be in your best interest to skip this blog, and go down and listen to me talk about the Colts and lots of other pointless stuff.

This review WILL contain SPOILERS about the film, and is really meant for people who have seen the film already.

AGAIN, I'm going to state this for those who skimmed the last sentence: Today's Blog is ONLY about "Firefly" and "Serenity". AND it contains SPOILERS! DO NOT READ THIS if you haven't seen the film, or want to be surprised with EVERYTHING in the film. MAJOR SPOILER WARNING! PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK!

I got stuck working on Monday night, I wasn't supposed to, but it happened. And XBOX Live was down for some upgrades that night, so I decided to stay at work and watch a movie. I talked to Jason during the night, and asked him if there was anything he'd be willing to come watch with me (Jason and I haven't watched a movie in the same theatre together in EONS, aside from the first time I watched "Serenity"). So, Jason said he really wanted to watch "Serenity" again, and didn't get to before his theatre lost it. I was looking to watch something I hadn't seen before, but I also knew I wanted to watch "Serenity" again, and I was long overdue to write this review. So, we decided to do it. Now, at my theatre, we don't start movie we don't sell for, and generally the last set of movies we don't do much business, and don't start many things. So, I planned on starting "Serenity" right when I got done doing all my work, and not getting out too late. Of course, on this night, we ended up selling TWO TICKETS for the show, and it didn't get over until after midnight. But, I was commited to watching it, and we threaded it up and started it as soon as it was over.

At one point, Jason called and asked if a couple of people could come. He had mentioned to some of his buddies that he was going to watch it again, and they wante to come as well. Justin, Phil, and Aaron all come with Jason, and it was a reuniting of the group of us that used to watch "Firefly" episodes together on Monday nights.

"Serenity" has made it into my top FIVE of the year. And not to sound bad, but that's not hard to do this year. Here's my top five, so far:

1. "Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith"
2. "Elizabethtown"
3. "Sin City"
4. "Serenity"
5. "Batman Begins"

It's odd. Two comic book movies, two Sci-Fi movies, and a Cameron Crowe flick. Not a typical Top Five List. There's a couple more flick coming out before the end of the year, that will probably alter this list ("Narnia" and "Potter 4") but, this is it as of now.

Onto the flick. It's probably the BEST written film of the year. Over the past few monthes, I've really enjoyed Josh Whedon's writting, both on the show, and in the movie. The dialogue is great, quick, and quirky.

Wash: This is gonna get pretty interesting.
Mal: Define "interesting"
Wash: Oh God, Oh God, we're all gonna die!
Mal (into intercom): This is the captain. We have a little problem with our entry sequence, so we may experience some slight... turbulence, and then explode.

The characters are well defined, and show great range of emotion. Nathan Fillion ROCKS. Mal is probably one of my favorite Sci-Fi characters of all time, and rank right next to Han Solo as the "cool" captain of a spaceship. The character of Mal has so many levels about him. He's obviously harbring some DEEP psychological issues regarding the fact that he lost a large number of men at the Battle of Serenity Valley, and when this issue comes up between Mal and Jayne, it's one of the most tense moments in the film, and it's all in his eyes. Jayne was a character that was always enjoyable in the series, and this continues in the film. He's got some of the best one-liners and subtle jokes that I don't think a lot of people catch. I think it's easier to catch them if you've seen the TV series, because you're expecting them, but for people who've ont seen the show, they might come too fast, and might be hard for some to follow. Through the TV series, the audience has more than enough time to get accustomed to Jayne and his attitude. The rest of the cast are fine as well, however many of them didn't have the presence that they deserved.

Shepherd Book was missing for too much of the show, and I'll address him later. Inara's absence was also felt. I understand her leaving, and how it played out through the film and the plot, and it's requirement for her to be gone, and I did like it was mentioned in the TV series, near the end, and who knows what would have happened if the series had continued on air, she might not have ever left. But, she did, an dit works in the film, but it lost something that was a key part to the TV show, and that's the relationship between Mal and Inara. If you're looking for it, it's there in the movie, and one of the final scenes gives you that hint and glimmer of what was missing, but their constant bickering and fighting, overlying their true feeling for each other, was almost non-exsistant in this film. The moments they had during the show were perfect, and kept you wondering when they would finally get together. A part of me is glad that they didn't, at the end of the film, but I was bothered that there wasn't more moments in the film, address their relationship that was present in the series. People who have not seen the show, would not fully understand what these two mean to each other, and their history. But, this is a two-hour film, "Firefly" was 13-ish hours, and had more time to develop.

Well, let's get onto the film. The Opening Title sequence is AWESOME. One LONG shot, taking the viewer through the entire ship. I have since learned that this was actually two seperate takes, and there is a "seem" where they put them together (a la "Rope" by Hitchcock, it happens in the middle of a camera move when no one is on screen). he shot follows Mal from the bridge, through the entire ship, both levels, and ends up in the big storage area, where they are gettign ready for their mission that's going to open the story up, and give a look at what these guys do. The dialogue in the opening is quick, and fast paced, but it gives the viewer a lot of information about what is going on. It develops a lot of the ack story, and shows you how Mal takes charge, and people listen. Then, you've got one of the drawback to movie (in my opinion). Simon's character has CHANGED from the show. Jason and I have had a couple of discussion regarding this, and he has some valid points about how Simon is merely standing up fro River, and would do so now matter what, because it's his sister. But, it just bothers me, because in the TV series, he's very passive and fearful of Mal, but right away in the opening scene of this flick, he's presented as a tough guy, who is willing to stand up to the captain, and almost disregards the fact that for the past 8 monthes, Mal has been hiding him and his sister from the Alliance. So, I'm sure it's a little thing, and probably didn't bother anyone else, but I didn't like how is character was canged from the TV series.

Mal: Nothing to fear, doctor.
Simon: This isn't fear. This is anger.
Mal: Well, kinda hard to tell one from the other, with a face like yours.
Simon: I imagine if it were fear, my eyes would be a little wider.
Mal: I'll look for that next time.

I talked about the absence of Inara and Shepherd Book, and Jason has a REALLY good theory about this. There's a lot of stress and tension on the ship, in the movie. And Jason believes that this is because those two are missing. Inara kept Mal happy (okay, maybe not happy, but he was in a better mood when he used to flirt with her!), and Shepherd Book kind of kept everyone calm and peaceful and was a good character of knowledge, wisdom, and guidance (things which are now missing from the ship). I have to agree with Jason and his theory, and say that things definetly changed on the ship without their presences.

Mal: You're not dying on me.
Book: ...can't order me around, boy. I'm not one of your crew...
Mal: Of course you are.

I was sad to see Shepherd Book die, but I was afraid that too many people weren't going to care. You don't get 13 episodes to meet Book, you get one scene where Mal and the crew hide out, Book and Mal have their typical Beliver/Non-Believer debates, and then they go on their way, only to come back and find Book dying.

Book: When I talk about belief, why do you always assume I'm talking about God?

Those who haven't gotten to know his character throughout the series are not going to see this for the HUGE lost that it was. Book was awesome! He kept a crew of misfits banded together for the entire run of TV show. Now, they will forever be without his guidance. Something else I want, related to Book, is to know his history. I want to know where he came from, and what he did.

Book: You know, I wan't always a preacher.
Mal: You'll have to tell me about that someday.
Book: No, I don't.

Book is somethign special. When he was shot, and taken to the hospital, a card in his wallet was scanned, and everyone reacted right away, and treated him like he was something super-important. And I doubt all of that was because he was a Shepherd. He's got to have some kind of connections, somewhere. In an interview with Joss Whedon, he said "...Book has done works for evil men, in his past..." Justin pointed out that "evil men" could mean the Alliance, and that he could have, at one point, been an Operative himself. Which would be pretty cool. And it would be a story I would love to one day see expanded on, especially if he had some kind of previous connection to Serenity, which caused him to choose that ship for his journey, in the Pilot episode. Book is a mystery, and one I'd like to know more about.

Another misleading part of the film deals with the opening, and introduciton to River and Simon. First, in the TV series, Simon claims to not have any idea what they are doing to his sister. Now, this might be something Joss had not considered doing, until the movie, or it might have been something that he had planned, and Simon was just lying to everyone. But, his going in and learning as much as he can from the doctors, just before he break her out, kind of changes what Simon does know throughout the series, and how he acts lik ehe doesn't know they did to her. Now, I've only seen each episode once, but I'm going to have to go back and re-watch them to see if there's any little hints anywhere, or if this was just overlooked until it needed to be addressed. Aside from this, when they are in the elevator shaft, and look up to see the ship drop something to rescue them, I am afraid those who don't watch the show are going to think that it's Serenity helping them, and that's how they came to be on ship. Those who have seen the show, know the truth, and perhaps some things like that are geared towards those who have seen the show, but I still don't like the ambiguity of it, and how people can think the wrong thing about their escape, and how they came to be on the ship. Jason's response was, "It doesn't matter, who cares if people think it's Serenity. It's still got them hooked on the movie..." To some extent I can see his point, but I don't know if I truly agree on it. I would prefer people to know the truth and exactly what's going on. I guess it's kind of like a history lesson, somethings you just have to go backand learn for yourself, so that other things can make sense. Seeing the series is just a must for ANYONE!

River is beyond awesome, and her WHOOPING up on the Reavers was incredible. I didn't realize until the second time, that the shot of her tearing them up, is one uncut shot, that circles her 1080-degrees. It's amazing. It was WELL choreographed. Also, her scene in the bar, where she is "unlocked" for the first time, and begins single-handedly tearing the place up: TOO COOL!!!!

Wash: Can we start with the part where Jayne gets beat up by a 90 pound girl? Because that's never getting old.

Chiwetel Ejiofor is just AMAZING as The Operative. I've dug this dude ever since I first saw him in "Love, Actually". I also think he was very good in "Four Brothers", and his acting style is top-notch in my opinion. I love the way he delivers lines, and how hehas presence on screen. He's much better than the assassain that borded "Serenity" in "Ojects in Space" (technically the final episode).

The Operative: Every minute you keep River Tam from me, more people will die.

He's cold, he's stone cold and plays it well. He's cold, but you can read emotion in his eyes. You can see what he is thinking. It's just amazing. Chiwetel brings more to this character than any of the other bounty hunters or assassains that the Alliance has sent, and I like the fact that he doesn't have a name or a ranking in the Alliance database.

The Operative: Because, like this facility, I do not exsist.

Wash's death was by far the most unexpected moment in the film, and in the "Serenity" universe. It just happens. You've just caught your breathe, and then WHAM! Who knew? Who could have seen it coming? Wow. And it sucks. And I know a number of people who are really disappointed about it. But, MAN, did it change Zoe's character! And that made for some good tense moments and action during the standoff scene with the Reavers, where Zoe shows no fear and walks directly into them firing.

Kaylee: Wait, where's Wash? Where's Wash!?!?
Zoe: He ain't comin'.

I'm interested to see where that takes the characters in the future. It's obvious that it's going to change Zoe's life in the future, and now Mal has to pilot the ship (for the time being). It's just so sad to see Wash go. Book is a little easier to deal with, he left the ship, he was going on with his life, and tragedy happened. But Wash had just saved the day, and his reward: The Reavers killed him!

River delivers my favorite line from the entire TV series. With Jayne sitting on the operating table in the medical room, River pops her head in and calmly says to him "I can kill you with my brain", then turns around walks out. GENIUS! She's so freaky, just being a nuerotic psychotic little 17-year-old girl, who we all know it MESSED UP! It was cool to see what she was capable of. River ROCKS! And Summer Glau is going to have a great career (I hope), because she has a great screen presence, and a large amount of her acting, for her character, is done in her eyes and face. The facial expressions speak VOLUMES compared to what she actually says. I'm wondering if she knows other secrets, and if ther's more to River than we learned in this film, which was a great deal. I almost wish they wouldn't have given it away in the trailer. I had already seen the trailer for "Serenity" when I started watching "Firefly", so I knew that River went psychotic in the bar, and that she was a weapon. This is a fact that is completely void of the TV series. We know River is "special" but we don't know why. Well, I knew why while wathcing the show, but it still didn't hurt the movie's appeal. However, if they never would have show River going crazy on people in the bar, it would have REALLY stood out in the film, and shocked a lot of people.

Jason is right about the emotions in the film. They are an AMAZING roller coaster. Up then down. Happy then sad. Shocked then confused then blown away. Even while writting this review, I'm getting emotional. Think about the way lines are delivered, thinking about how Mal reacts to Book tying in his arms and then how Mal basically loses his sanity towards everyoneone his ship and tells them to either do what he says, or get off his boat. Thinking about how Zoe reacts to life after Wash dies. She has no fear, and she wants revenge on the Reavers, no matter what Jayne tells her. She's going at them with no fear, all adrenaline and vengence. Thinking about Simon and his love for his sister, and how River was willing to sacrifice herself in order to make sure that her brother and his friends are taken care of. I can remember the first time watching the flick, when Simon is shot, and River looks at him at tells him "...you've done a good job of taking care of me, now it's my turn..." and runs back into the room full of Reavers. Joss Whedon NAILS emotions and dramatic situations. The most emotional scene for me in the movie is Mal's "heroic" speech. After they've all learned the secret River knows, and they decide they have to get to Mr. Universe, so they can tell the world, Mals' got an amazing speech that kind of sums up who he works.

Mal: Y'all got on this boat for different reasons, but y'all comin' to the same place. So now I'm asking more of you than I have before. Maybe everything. Sure as I know anything, I know this: In a year or maybe ten, on another planet, or perhaps even on this very ground, they'll swing back to the belief that they can make people better; and I don't hold to that. So, no more runnin'.
(long pause)
I aim to misbehave.

It's beautifully shot, the light coming into the dining area, everyone sitting around the ship, listening. It's the moment where people who didn't watch the TV series, realize that despite all the fighting and bickering that goes in between this crew, they all look to Mal for his leadership, and his need and desire to do the moral and right thing. Now, even though Mal and his crew are a band of rebels, who take and do illegal jobs, they're still seen as the hero, because they are robbing from the rich, and giving to the poor. And in the episode "The Train Job", you learn early on in the series that Mal is about doing the right thing, when his crew steals medical supplies that are needed to help a group of people survive, and he gives them back, butting a price on his head and the head of his crew. This episode also includes one of my favorite scenes, when Mal kicks one of Niska's thugs into the engine turbine. Mal's a great character, and most of the film doesn't do him justice, as compared to the TV series. He's more upset and angry in the film, but it's understandable. Still, I think it would be better for people to see his joking side on the TV series, before seeing how intense he is in the fim.

Mal Reynolds is an amazing character, and I love the depth that Nathan Fillion takes him to in the series. Behind everything, he's got a big heart, and wants to do the right thing, while getting by in the universe. Mal's dedication and determination are a great part of his character, and he often says the right thing, at the right time.

Mal: You think she'll hold together?
Zoe: She's torn up plenty, but she'll fly true.
Mal: Likely to be a bumpy ride.
Zoe: Always is.

He doesn't patronize her, instead he reminds her of how much Wash meant to the crew and to the ship. He reminds her that things don't always go perfect, but they still get through it all, and Zoe handles it well. They've been through a lot, and he's going to protect her, now that Wash can not.

It's probably one of the top two best written films this year. The thing that most attracts me to this universe, is the writting. Since I started watching "Firefly", I have been very impressed with the way the characters are written, and the actions that they take. The stories are well thought out, and gave extraordinary impressions about the characters. It's filled with action and adventure, excitment and fear, and it's just plain smart. It's got all the elements that I look for in something I want to watch. I only wish it would have done better on TV, and that the box office numbers were higher, so that a sequel would be guaranteed. I hope to see more stories about these characters, and find out more of what Joss has in store for this galaxy. The film ended perfectly. I nice interaction between River and Mal, who have not always seen eye-to-eye.

Mal: It ain't all buttons and charts little Albatross. You know what the first rule of flyin' is? Well I suppose you do, since you already know what I'm about to say.
River: I do, but I like to hear you say it.
Mal: Love. You can know all the math in the 'Verse, but take a boat in the air you don't love, she ain't keepin' up just as sure as the turning of worlds. Love keeps her up when she ought to fall down, tells ya she's hurtin' 'fore she keens, makes her home.
River: Storm's getting worse.
Mal: We'll pass through it soon enough.

Heartland Opening Event

So, once again, the Heartland Film Festival's Opening Night has come to a close, for the fourth year in a row. I'm going to start with a pair of pictures from the night:

Shane M. White, John Gatins (director of "Dreamer") and Kristen White.

Shane M. White and Judge Reinhold!!!

So, Jason invited Kristen and I and Cecilia Shaw to the Heartland Film Festival's Opening Night Event, which this year included a screening of the film "Dreamer". First, there was dinner and drinks, and we had the pleasure of meeting a couple of guys who work at a local TV station. Randy and one of sons, along with Andy and his wife. They were a pleasure to share dinner with, and we constantly ran into them through the course of the night. VERY NICE people. The film was at the IMAX Theatre, and being dinner guests we were allowed to walk into the theatre on the red carpet, which was rather cool.

After the film there was a reception with a Q & A session. During the Q & A, there was a woman standing near our table, and she eventually went and stood directly next to Kristen, and at the end of the Q & A it was made known that she was Dakota Fanning's mother. It was neat to know that I was close to her (not knowing who she was). I guess that's a good thing for parents, they can cruise through the audience and no one knows who they are. She seemed extremely nice, and was always smiling.

Following the Q & A, I snuck up near the stage and talked with John Gatins for a couple of minutes, basically just about the other films he's written ("Varisty Blues", "Summer Catch", "Hardball", and "Coach Carter"). "Coach Carter" being one of my favorite recent films, I had to let him know how much I enjoyed the films he has written. He seemed really cool, and kept commenting about how polite people are out here in Indiana. It was nice to hear, especially when he compared us Hoosiers to the people in Los Angeles. He was a really nice guy. After talking with him, I snuck over and grabbed a picture with Judge Reinhold. Being a HUGE "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" fan, I had a couple words with him (in 2000, he was in town for the festival and I had him sign my "Fast Times" VHS tape, so I didn't ask for another autograph), however, people were pulling him in many directions and our time was only a couple of seconds. It was nice to get the chance to take a picture with him.

It was an AWESOME night. I really hope this isn't my last year going, but if it is, then I had a GREAT time, with some fun people. THANK YOU to Jason for bringing me once again.

I also ran into Jason Kistler, who has done some acting for GemInI in the past. He's a volunteer with Heartland this year, so it was good to talk to him for a quick second, and I need to shoot him an email, so we can chat some more.

"Lost" ROCKED last night!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was so cool. I've got lots of new theories, but I'm going to save them for another Blog.

Jason and I are supposed to get together tomorrow afternoon and begin working on "Crazy About You" stuff, so hopefully we'll make some progress on that. I'll write more tomorrow.

Primer, Sin City, Revolver

So, I've been wanting to see "Primer" for some time now, but I've been having problems finding it for rent. Family Video and V-H-One Video both don't carry it, and Blockbuster only has one copy and it's never in. So, I finally broke down and just bought it. I've read so many good things about it and it beat out "Garden State" at Sundance, so I figured I'd enjoy it. Well, I did, but it wasn't as good as I expected. I've read so many things about how people had to watch the flick five times, then talk to people about it for hours and they still didn't understand what was going on. Well, I'm pretty sure I understood the entire flick (Now, it IS GOOD, but a little bit of a let down...) and I'll probably watch the flick again, just to make sure I understand everything, but I'm pretty sure I've got it, or at least I think I do. I so also want to listen to the audio commentary by Shane Carruth, to find out how he did some of the things he did on a budget of $7,000. "Primer" looks good and it has some amazing acting and dialogue for an indie flick. And it's VERY intelligent for its subject matter. It does begins slow, but once they get into the theoretics of the "box", it becomes REALLY interesting. It's a good flick for Indies, as we can learn a lot from it.

So, I'm checking out "Sin City" on DVD right now. It's one of those flicks that I KNOW has a Special Edition coming out in December, but I just WANT it right now, because it's THAT COOL. Plus, it's a flick I don't mind buying twice. (Just like all of the "Lord of the Rings" films.) So, I've got it to watch now, and MAN! This flick is so well made. It looks beautiful and the dialogue is amazing. The stories are wonderful... I could go on for hours about this flick. I LOVE IT!

Finally, I caught the trailer for "Revolver" online tonight. It's the new flick from Guy Ritchie, the director of "Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels" and "Snatch", who hurt his fans with the release of "Swept Away", but now he's going back to his crime-dramas with "Revolver". OF COURSE starring Jason Statham, who just rocks, and Ray Liotta. The trailer is well cut and looks like a lot of fun action. Unfortunetly, the flick does not yet have an American distributor. So, hopefully someone picks it up soon, so I can check the flick out.

Bore of the Worlds

The aliens don't work as well as they did in the summer of 1996.
"War of the Worlds" falls SO SHORT of the original, and of "Independence Day" that I feel like a fool for sitting through the entire thing.

Now, if you haven't seen the film, you might not want to read this. I'm sure I'll make a couple comments some would consider "spoilers". So, stop now, until you've seen the film. Unless you don't care.



Still here? Okay. Good. SLOW, painfully SLOW. And even worse, NOTHING happens. Tom Cruise's character doesn't change. Some characters in the flick are so flat and poorly performed that I almost lost my mind. I can buy people doing things out of the ordinary, because they're all in a panic, and so forth. Okay, that's fine. And, after I sat through two hours of torture, I witnessed the worst pay-off to any film. The resolution is just so weak, I almost felt cheated for watching this film. It's not good. It's not worth ten bucks a ticket. Thank God, I see things for free.


No good DVDs or CDs coming out this week, so I might take advantage and pick up a couple of older flicks I've been wanting.

GREAT NEWS: I'm getting back my JVC El Kameleon KD-LX111 CD Player that was destroyed the last time my car was broken into. I found one on Ebay with a Buy-It-Now price, and my buddy Jonathan picked it up for me. So, hopefully by the end fo the week I'll be able to roll over to his place and pick it up and pay him off.

"No One Dies" is coming along great. We're rounding out the cast with a good group of local actors, so I'm looking forward to getting this production started, in less than two weeks!!! Zach and I have a great deal of last minute details we need to get worked out, mostly involving the location, but everything else seems to be going great.

Thanks Reggie!

I was there. I can always tell my kids that I was at Reggie Miller's final game. I saw him play his last game, his last minute, and I saw him hit his last shot (which was, of course, a three-pointer). I watched Michael Jordan's last game (the second time, when he hit the game winner over the Jazz in 1998) and I was personally at Reggie Miller's last game. It was an emotional night.

We did our best.
We had ups.
We had downs.
We had suspensions.
We had injuries.
We fought.
We overcame.

"There's always next season," Right?

But, it won't be the same. Because the Pacers starting line up will be missing the number 31. I assume the first home game will include the retiring of his number, so we'll get one more glimpse of Reggie on the court of Conseco Fieldhouse, but never again in his white with blue pinstriped jersey.

The good news about tonight was that the Pacers at least showed up at the game. Unlike game four and game five, the Pacers played hard tonight. We lead for most of the game, but once they got on a roll near the end of the third, it was just kinda downhill for us, and begin down by only three with five minutes to go made me think we were actually going to pull it off. Alas, we fell short.

Jermaine had a great game, and got his shot going early, which helped out a lot. Reggie was amazing, he got some good looks and made a great deal of shots, which cause the entire crowd to explode. Foster and David both worked hard. Unfortunetly, Jackson and Tinsley just didn't have their best games. Jackson missed a couple of wide open three-pointers, and I'm sure that effected him mentally.

Next year, with the return of Ron Artest, we will have a Championship Team. It will be perfect.
Move Stephen Jackson back over to Shooting Guard, stick Ron Artest back at Power Forward. Leave Jermaine, Dale/Foster and Jamaal alone, and we'll have an amazing team, with an ever-impressive bench. There's only a few people I think we can get rid of. David Harrison and Jon Edwards never really lived up to their potential for me, even though they were playing a good amount of time during the suspensions. They just didn't produce for me. And I strongly believe we need to get rid of Bender. He hasn't done ANYTHING this year! He missed more games than Ron Artest did! He's dead money that could be spent on another Fred Jone or James Jones, another player who has amazing future potential. I don't think we need him around.

There's always next season. And I'll be there again. I only missed one Playoff Game this year, and during the regular season, Kristen and I made it to about 20 or 22 of the 41 home games. At least half, if not more, as long as nothing else was going on that night, or if tickets were already sold out. We're considering season tickets next year, we've just got to watch our finances this summer. Next season, and what a good season it's going to be. GO PACERS!

And Reggie, Thank You for everything you've done. All the memories, all the highlight reels, all photos, all the attitude. Thank you for making us love Indiana Basketball. Thank you for being someone amazing to watch, someone who could always hit that game winner. Thank you for everything you've done. You're a hero in Indiana.

So, "Episode III" has opened. I'll be working on my "Spoiler-filled Review" and will post it in the next few days. It seems like most people enjoy the flick, which is good.

It's a sad night, so I think I'm going to head of and get some sleep before work tomorrow.

I have realized that I enjoy this blog thing, just because I like talking so much. I enjoy babbling and not allowing people to stop me. This is so cool. My mind can run wild and no one can stop me. Woo-Hoo! I'm out.

"Revenge of the Sith" Overall Thoughts

I’ve seen it. Finally. In some ways I’ve waited my whole life for tonight. It’s the close to something I’ve grown up with my entire life. I was too young to wait in line in for any of the films. The only one from the original trilogy I saw in theatres was “Return of the Jedi”. (Until the 1997 re-releases) I mainly grew up with “Star Wars” at home, on worn-out video. Since the age of six, I have wanted to be a Jedi. To learn the ways of the force from Luke Skywalker. And now I’ve seen my last “Star Wars” film in theatres. “Revenge of the Sith” is something I’ve been looking forward to for three years now. Unlike most of my friends, I enjoyed “Attack of the Clones”. It was exactly what I wanted. So, I felt that it set up what I wanted in “Episode III”.

In 2002, I made the claim that “Episode III” would be my favorite of all the “Star Wars” films. After seeing the film, I think it’s the truth. “A New Hope” will always be special because it was the story that started the mythology, and I’m currently sitting and watching it while I write this, to see the connections made between the two films, and because I’m just feeling really nostalgic tonight. “Empire” was my favorite because of the multiple stories and the introduction of Yoda, Luke’s training, Vader’s attempts to convert Luke, their confrontation, it worked so well as a story. And “Return of the Jedi” just sealed everything for me, with Luke’s “real” battle with Vader. In my youth, the battle in the Throne Room was the best, because it was the first “real” Jedi fight scene. So, the original trilogy will always and forever hold special places in my heart for what they meant to me growing up. The re-releases in 1997 only expanded my love for the series, as I began collecting the re-release toys, figures, lightsabres, and anything else “Star Wars” related.

Then came the prequel trilogy. We had the story of Luke Skywalker, now it was time to develop his father, Anakin, and show his path towards the Dark Side of the force. “Episode I” was a disappointment to me, overall. In retrospect, I’ve changed some of my opinions and views of the film, but I felt it was too childish and lacked the layered and intelligent stories from the originals. It was eye candy, lots of blatant overuse of special effects that were not needed. That was something special about the original trilogy: what they accomplished with puppets and available resources. Not relying on the additions of computer enhancements. I still skip the pod race every single time. However, the redeeming factor is the lightsabres duel between Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan and Darth Maul. Intense, raw, full of emotion, I loved it. Seeing Jedi in their prime, the intensity that they fight with and their skills were far superior to anything in the original trilogy. As I stated earlier, “Episode II” had what I wanted to see: Confusion, the obvious presence of the Dark Side, and their ability to cloud the Jedi and the creation of the Clone Army, the ability of Palpatine to manipulate as many people as he does. Unfortunately, the lightsabres duels were one of the downfalls to “Episode II”. The Obi-Wan-Anakin-Dooku fight was nothing even close to impressive, and the Yoda-Dooku fight just looked fake. It was enjoyable to see Yoda hold his own, but it just didn’t feel right. Again, the overuse of digital effects ruined parts of this film as well.

And now, the film I’ve been waiting for my entire life (from a certain point of view…). It’s everything I ever wanted. It makes many connections between the original trilogy and the prequels. It explains a great number of things, some things you have to pay close attention to in order to catch the quick reference/explanation, and others are more easily explained. There’s still some things that were not addressed, and that disappointed me, so I’ll probably end up reading the book soon, and hoping it details some aspects a little better.

I’m not going to give away a bunch of spoilers in this review, and it’s going to be pretty short for now. In a couple of days, after most people on the planet have seen the film, I’ll go into more details about the “nit-picky” things in the film. Overall, it’s amazing. The fight sequence between Anakin and Obi-Wan is the best fight I have ever seen on film. The speed, the fury, the emotion, the choreography, it’s all beyond what I ever could have expected. I saw brief glimpses of the fight during a special presentation at Celebration III, but they couldn’t do justice to the entire sequence.

The dialogue was much improved over the past two films. The storyline and plot are also noticeably improved. It appears Lucas was saving up everything for this film, and Thank God it was PG-13. I can’t imagine getting across the emotion and tone of the film, if it were cut down to PG. There were some good political comments made from time to time, that actually made sense, outside of the “Star Wars” Universe.

Since I said this wasn’t going to contain any spoilers, it makes it hard to currently discuss a great deal of the action and story, which is fine, because next week I’ll be talking for long hours about the film, and about how it all expands the mythology of the “Star Wars” Universe.

It was bittersweet as the credits began. The end was predictable and when I happened, I thought to myself “…no, this can’t be it…” And it’s not. Luckily, I can come home and put in “A New Hope” (like I did…) and reflect on the story I just watched. It’s amazing. It’s beautiful. It shows in great detail how one man can so easily fall, when pressure is applied from the right places. As much as I despise “Episode I”, lots of things relate back to eight-year-old Anakin, and it shows how and why he became the way he did. It’s an amazing journey to watch, however I’m pretty depressed that it will be the last “new” film in the series, that I will get to see on the big screen. Luckily, it satisfied me. And right now, my thought dwell on Obi-Wan. I plan to begin writing a piece based on my thoughts about my favorite character in the “Star Wars” Universe. I’ve been thinking about him a great deal over the past two weeks, but neglected to write anything, until after I viewed the final film. I can now take all my knowledge of him, over six films, and discuss the good and the bad of General Obi-Wan Kenobi. Who is truly a deep and complex character, with many flaws, which make him the most human character in the series.
More discussion about the film to come next week, when it won’t ruin anything for most people.

Bad news for the night, was the Pacers loss. Now facing elimination in Game 6 back here in Indy. Sadly, I might be at Reggie Miller's last home game of his career. It a perfect world, we could win Game 6 and then steal Game 7 back in Detroit, but the truth is that we're not playing well, and the Pistons are using that against us. Tonight we played like a bunch of guys who didn't care. No one hustled, no one tried, and no one took control of the game for us. Anthony Johnson started at the end of the second, but nothing more came out of it. Thursday night will be a true test. Let's hope they can survive. GO PACERS!

Movies...

I had the day off work, so I took advantage of it, and while Kristen was at work I went to see a film I'd been waiting 2 1/2 years for, "Mindhunters". Yea... There's a reason this film got bad test screenings, and sat on the shelf for so long. Typically, this is the type of film that I like. Psychology, plot twists, whodunit?... I've thought for a long time it would be a guilty pleasure of mine. Well, I was completely wrong. The film just doesn't work. It really took me on a roller coaster. Sometimes I like it, then it began doing things I disliked, but then it would pull something that I liked, and thought it might begin to redeem itself, but it never did. It was an unfortunate waste of my time.

So, because of Chris Moore's post last week and the series finale of Season 3, I've had Project Greenlight on my mind a lot. And to be honest, Season 2 didn't impress me enough to ever want to watch "The Battle of Shaker Heights". It just never seemed interesting, based on what I saw in the series. So, tonight I was looking for something to watch, and decided that I would FINALLY give the film a chance. It was okay. Nothing special, and nothing better than I expected after seeing the series. It was interesting to watch the film, and know some of the scenes that they cut out. Unfortunety, it just made the film too short. But, the sad thing was that the film FELT LONG. As far as independent films go, it was definetly a good attempt, and an improvement over "Stolen Summer" in visuals and production value, however I don't feel that the script was great. Oh well, now I've seen it.

Jason and I talked about "Episode III" on the phone today. We both hoped that we would get the prints today, at our respective theatres. However, first thing this morning, I called the distribution center and they told me that they wouldn't be delivered until tomorrow afternoon. So, Jason was catching up on "The Clone Wars", which made me decide to pop in the DVD and watch it this afternoon. I doubt General Greveious is going to be as cool as he is in the animated version, but I can't wait until tomorrow to see him live. I'm REALLY pumped up about this film, and expect me to write a HUGE review tomorrow night after I see it. I'll be watching the Pacers game tomorrow night, then rushing off to work to check out "Revenge of the Sith". (Probably two times...)

I planned on watching "Attack of the Clones" tonight, just to refresh me some more before I go into "Episode III" tomorrow, but after "The Battle of Shaker Heights", I was just in the mood for something more personal, more real. So, I popped in "Untitles" (the director's cut of "Almost Famous"). It's a lot of fun to watch this film, because I have "Almost Famous" memorized, so when I watch the director's cut, I knew every second that is edited differently, or extended. It makes it fun to watch.

I spent some time today working with some of the photos we took yesterday morning. I've been making some promotional photos that we'll be putting on our website. I need to do some more work on "No One Dies". I've been really distracted recently with the Pacers and "Revenge of the Sith". After this weekend, my brain will probably calm down, and get back into film work.

I think that's about all for today. Let's just hope and pray for some GOOD LUCK for the Pacers!!!