"Purple Violets" Review

"Purple Violets" is a film most people probably haven't heard of. Most likely, one or two (maybe three) of my readers are aware of the film, but since it was never released in theatres - I doubt many people have heard of it. The film, written and directed by Edward Burns, was originally distributed exclusively through iTunes, and later released on DVD. I came across the film via NetFlix - as it thought it was a film I would be interested in.

Interestingly enough, it turns out that this film has hit me at a particularly interesting point in my life. And I really enjoyed it.

The film basically revolves around Patti (Selma Blair). She's a "writer" and she's been married for seven years. And hasn't written a book in ten years, instead, she's become a real estate agent, selling up-scale apartments. Her best friend is Kate (Debra Messing) and one night they go out for Kate's 33rd Birthday, and end up at the same restaurant as Brian and Michael (Patrick Wilson and Edward Burns). It turns out that 12 years ago, these four people were best friends and two couples. Both relationships ended, for various reasons. Kate and Michael's relationship ended over a bad night and a misunderstanding about whether or not Michael cheated on her.


After the chance meeting in the restaurant, and Patti's failing marriage at home, she goes to one of Brian's book signings and then end up going to dinner to catch up. This begins a spark and sets things into motion for Patti and Brian to re-examine their relationship and what went wrong. During this time, Michael does everything in his power to get Patti to convince Kate to talk to him, so that he can get some closure over their bad break-up. It seems Michael continues to carry a torch - 12 years later - and hates the fact that Kate hates him over something that he didn't do.


I thought it was a wonderful examination of relationships (although much like Mamet's work, these characters really feel like they could easily cross over into "The Brothers McMullen" or "Sidewalks of New York" without a problem). And I personally could relate to both relationships that exsist in the film. On one hand, there's the old flame - right in my face - who I want to have sparks with, but there are obstacles in the way. Then, there is the break-up that ended badly, and ended over misunderstandings and hate-filled conversations. The "Girl Who Got Away" Syndrome, and the one I would do anything to get back - despite being stone-walled and bad-mouthed. Finally, it somewhat makes the point, that sometime loves can cross the boundaries of time, and while time doesn't always heal the wounds - sometimes the later words and explainations can ease the pain of the past. Relationships are a complicated thing, and I like the way this film looks at them.

Finally, the more important underlying tone and concept to the film is inspiration. While Patti's character hasn't written a novel in ten years, Brian has been writing a successful series of crime novels, but once he attempts to write something more personal - it's horribly recieved. Brian becomes a supportive confidant to Patti, and does his best to convince her to give writing another chance, by starting with short stories. I keep this blog, because it allows me to write and vent about things in my life. I haven't written a fictional piece of work in the past couple of years. And watching this film has somewhat inspired me to attempt to figure out something to write. And this is how I plan to do it: I'm going to create a new blog, and write a chapter at a time. I haven't picked a subject, genre, or anything else yet - but once I do, I'm going to begin my first online "novel". Fictional. Narrative. An online novel. And I'm going to hope it works.

Here's the trailer for film:

The Travelling Bubble-Gum Film

It was last Saturday night, and I had nothing to do - aside from hang out with my friend Amanda. We decided that we wanted to catch a film, and we really couldn't agree on anything. Then, I showed her the TRAILER for "Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist". She was sold, and we were out the door to watch the film.

It's taken me a while to compose this review. There's a lot of good stuff going on in the film. I've talked to both Troy and Jason about the film this week, and everytime I talked to someone, I was afraid that my review would look like it was just ripping off their impressions on the film, despite the fact that I looked at it much the same way as my friends.

I really, really, really liked the film. I enjoy films that take place in one day/night - such as "Clerks" or "Superbad". I like seeing just an interesting slice of a person's life. Now, I've had some wild nights in my life, and I've ended up in bizarre places with random people, and asked myself "How did this happen?". But, none of my experiences have come close to the fun and wild night experienced by Nick and Nora and their friends.

I like the music. It's lots of bands that I don't typically listen to, but one day would like to buy the soundtrack, because I really enjoyed the music in the film. I think its along the lines of "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" or "Singles" with its soundtrack. The music from various scenes fitting so perfectly with the actions on screen.


The acting was pretty good, and the character development was really well done. Starting witht he introduction to Nick's character, and then crossing into Norah's world, where we learn how she's been connected to Nick through the mix CDs he makes for his ex-girlfriend - which Norah ends up with. When they randomly run into each other at a club, and find out who each other is - it's the catalyst for two various intentions to run with each other. At first, Nick wants to use Norah to find out how to get back with his ex. And Norah wants to get to know her musical soul-mate better. Over time, its amazing to watch how the night plays out, and how their mixed feelings and emotions juxtapose and collide while two scared people learn to open up to someone new.


But, the storyline involves so much more than just two, new, random people spending the night getting to know each other. They both love an indie band named Find Fluffy - a band who performs secrets shows and leaves clues all over New York City to the location of the show, causing their fans to run amuck throughout the entire city while communicating with their friends to find the secret show. After Norah's friend (Caroline) gets too drunk to continue the night, Nick's gay bandmates offer to take her home, until they get side-tracked and Caroline escapes from the Gays. Thus begins a double-searching night, while everyone is trying to find Caroline and Find Fluffy at the same time. Thus begins the Journey of the Bubble Gum, as it makes its way all over New York City, finds various homes in various mouths while it makes its way from location to location. While its often sick, its sometimes funny, but by the end of the time morning comes, its interesting to reflect on everywhere this one piece of gum travelled over the course of less than 12 hours.


The film reminded me how much I love New York City. I've never had any "adventures" like this there, but the film just reminded me of all the good times I've had in the City with Jason and Letha, McNear and Noah. Walking around, going to random bars in the middle of the night, walking all over downtown and finding holes-in-the-wall where Letha knows. Nothing bizzare, no missing people, just good times in a really fun city. Like the Karaoke Night. Or the All-Day Football Day. Or my first night ever in NYC and the late-night dinner at Dallas B-B-Q. New York City is one of those places that some many amazing things can happen to you, and I'm glad I've always been there with friends.

I love movies I can relate to - on any level. Or, I love movies that just remind me how good and simple life should be. Life moves way too fast these days, there's so much going on and becoming an adult really limits the amounts of irrational decisions we are allowed to make. Everything begins to be planned out, everything becomes a cycle, there are daily things that can't be ignored and have to happen. Places we have to be, pets to take care of, chores that have to be accomplished. It's always fun to be removed from the reality of life, and taken to a place where life is simple and easy, and it reminds me of how I felt life once was. "Nick and Norah" did that for me. It reminded me of all the wild times and fun nights I've had with my friends. And luckily, I'll always have those memories to hold on to.


"Nick and Norah's Inifinate Playlist" is a fun, cute, and enjoyable film. It's a self-discovery film. It's a film about relationships and break-ups. It's a film about perspectives and expectations. And most importantly, it's a film about friends. It's not the most well-crafted storyline, but it's not crap. It's fun. And it's worth watching, just for enjoyment - and to watch the Journey of the Travelling Bubble Gum...

Probably the Very Last Person Who is Talking About "The Last Lecture"

There are a number of people in this world who I feel were taken too soon.
River Phoenix.
Jonathan Larson.
Heath Ledger.
Chris Farley.
This list is all entertainers, because that's what I'm most interested and attached to in life. This next person is a teacher, and he didn't die young, but it really feels like he was taken well before his time.

Hanging out with my parents this weekend, they introduced me to Randy Pausch. 7 Million people have already watched this video on YouTube, and millions more on Google Video and other outlets.

So, I feel like I'm the last person to find out about this - since it was delivered over a year ago - But, I wanted to pass it along to anyone else who happen to not have seen this. I honestly believe it's worth your time. And I can honestly say that it has changed my life...




If that's not enough for you, then you can check out THIS WEBSITE, which has a five-part series of interviews with Pausch, Family, and Friends - Done by Diane Sawyer.

Distant Relative or Re-Incarnate?

"Self Portrait" by
Edward Henry Potthast

Not too long ago, Zach went to an Art Museum in Ohio. And he brought me back a postcard, because when he saw it in the Gift Shop, he swore it looked like me. And, I'm going to be honest, I can't deny it too much. I do believe I see a serious resemblance.

So, I started looking into Edward Henry Potthast, and learned some kind of interesting things.

He was born on June 10th, 1857 - three days after my birthday, which also makes him a Gemini. And he was an artist - this could be translated into the modern "art" of film-making.

In the 1880s he traveled to Munich, Germany and studied. I planned on going to Munich last month... At the end of his time in Munich, he traveled to Paris before coming back to the United States. Again, I was supposed to visit this city last month...

In 1895, Potthast moved to New York City, and often spent the summer months at Cape Cod. These are both places that I have frequented over the past two years...

Although Potthast never married - at this time in my life, it feels like I never was either. Potthast died alone, and never had children. He was 69 years old when he died on March 9th, 1927. So, there's a chance that my death date could be: March 6th, 2050.

I'm considering not shaving for the entire month of October, and going as Edward Henry Potthast for Halloween...?

The London Holiday Blog

It's a couple of days of late. I've been back in the United States since late Saturday night.
I've just been in a funky kind of mood, and didn't feel like blogging about the fact that I was home earlier than I wanted to be. In my "real vacation" I would be sitting in Philadelphia right now, waiting for my 6:05pm flight to come back to Indy. Instead, I caught that flight on Saturday night.

It was a huge disappointment when the Chunnel Fire happened. I was VERY interested to find out how few people in the United States knew about the fire. Most people I talked to this week had no idea what happened. Someone on the French side of the Chunnel brought an illegal substance into the Chunnel, and during the trip some brakes caught on fire, which caught a tire on fire, which in turn caused this illegal substance to start a big fire. It was a freak accident, something that hasn't happened in 12 years - but it randomly HAD TO HAPPEN when I was in the city. Trains were cancelled on Friday, and thousands of people were "camping" in the train station during my three hours there. From some of the people I talked to that morning, I was told that Ferries from Dover were selling out hours in advance. Sadly, I went into a panic - I was travelling by myself, and on a somewhat limited budget. I took the underground out to Heathrow, and spent a couple of hours out there, trying to get thing straightened out for a trip home from Heathrow. On Friday, Eurorail was saying that there would be no service Saturday or Sunday - and all of the flights I was looking into in Heathrow were more expensive than just flying home. I made a paniced and frustrated decision to just pack it in, and come home early.

Despite that decision, my vacation was AWESOME. And I wish my refunds from my Paris and Germany hotels were instantly applied back to my checking account - because I would spent a few more days in London. (This is what I don't understand, it takes them 30 seconds to remove the money from my bank account, but when I ask for the refund - it's going to take 2 to 4 weeks for me to see my money back into my account... Makes no sense to me. When I go to Wal-Mart or somewhere and ask for a refund, it usually posts the next day. They have my account information, there is NO REASON it shouldn't be reversed and back in my account in 48 hours. It's kind of frustrating...)

London was awesome. It was beautiful. I loved the architecture, and I loved the older feeling of the city. Walking around was awesome. Picidilly Circus and Leicester Square felt like a mini-Times Square. Not as crowded, not as many LED Boards, but just as cool feeling. Lots of theatres and restaurants all around, and a nice park in the middle of Leicester Square. Then there was Trafalgar Square, where I chilled for a good hour on my first day of walking. Just watching people. The traffic threw me for a loop for a long time, so I would just look both ways before crossing any street. The Underground was intimidating the first day - but once I studied a map of the city, and started to recognize east and west areas of town, it made the second day much easier. Had I never visited New York City it probably would have been a lot worse, but once I figured out how to read the Underground signs and knew when I wanted to go east or west - I had no trouble with it for the last few days.

My hotel was really nice. Small, but exactly what I wanted. I got a number of TV channels, and actually watched a fair amount of American TV. Trivia-Style Game Shows are HUGE over there, and I watched a number of them. I watched a comedy/trivia show called "Never Mind the Buzzcocks" which was pretty entertaining. I think I watched two episodes on the same night. I also watched two quiz-shows called "Eggheads" and "Wogan's Perfect Recall" - both were pretty interesting. The channels made available to me were pretty simple:
BBC1
BBC2
Sky News 1
Sky News 2
Sky News 3
Sky Sports 1
Sky Sports 2
Sky Sports 3
ITV1
(Channel) 4
E4
(Channel) Five
(Channel) Five US

Pretty basic and simple naming of their channels. The coolest thing was the each day, Sky Sports 2 would air NFL Today around 4pm, so I was still able to get updates on the NFL each day. I also watched a good amount of Rugby while I was in London, and I finally believe I understand the sport - despite years of Zach trying to explain it to me. I'm just a visual person, and I needed to see it all happening. It was pretty cool. I also watched some Snooker, and that was a pretty cool billiards game.

Most days, I would wake up early (8am-ish) and start out for the day. Then, I would return to my hotel around 4pm, after walking around and taking the Underground all over, so that I could drop off anything that I purchased, and I was usually pretty tired. I would watch some TV, and usually take a nap until about 8pm. At that time, I would head out looking for somewhere to eat dinner. The sad part about London is that during the week, it basically shuts down at 11pm. All the restaurants, corner markets, and bars are pretty much done at 11pm. On one night's walk "home", I did find an overnight market, and was able to pick up some snacks. Usually, I would grab a bag of chips and a soda to drink in my room, before I went to sleep for the night. I tried a number of different sodas that we don't have here in the United States. Most were not very good - specifically one called Tango. I tried their Cherry Soda, and it was horrible. They also offer an apple version that I wanted to try, but Cherry was so bad, I never did. Mt. Dew was nowhere to be found, I can only guess they don't make it available there. I drank Pepsi or Sprite most of the time. Also, Blue Moon was nowhere to be found, so when I had a beer it was always a Stella Artois. Both Doritos and Pringles offer a number of different flavors over there. Or, some of their flavors have different names. "Cool Ranch" was not the name of their Ranch flavor - it was "Cool Original" - which blows my mind, because I consider "Nacho Cheese" to be the original flavor of Doritos, instead that's known as "Tangy Cheese". I tried some "Chili Heatwave" and really liked them, they were very similar to the new "Spicy Chili" that we have here in the States. I also tried some Paparika Pringles - they weren't really as good as I expected them to be, not horrible, and I ate half the can in one night - but they weren't as spicy or tangy as I was hoping for.

Staying in the Victoria area was really cool, I was close to a lot of things, and walked to about half of the places I went. I was around the corner from Buckingham Palace, but only walked past it once - I wasn't really there to do tourist stuff, I just wanted to chill out and relax. It took a while, but one night I took the Underground up to Picidilly Circus and then walked through Leicester Square, then to Trafalgar Sqaure, and then all the way down to the waterfront, where I walked across the Millennium Bridge and over to the London Eye. I then spent a good twenty minutes sitting on a bench, looking directly across the River Thames at Big Ben and Parliament - I also gave my parents a call at this time, to see if they had heard about the Chunnel fire. It was 11pm my time, and 6pm their time.

My "extra" night in the city, I basically just did more hanging out and walking around in the Picidilly Circus/Soho area of town. Letha gave me the phone number of one of her friends that was in London, but I had trouble figuring out how to get my phone to dial her number, and eventually gave up. Half the time I tried to call back to the States, I couldn't get it to work. International calling is confusing, and country codes were problematic. When I was in Heathrow, I was trying to call my Paris Hotel, and could never get it to connect. Oh well, I just spent that last night walking around, observing more people, and taking in the city. It was a Friday night, so places stayed open much past 11pm.

No matter how my holiday turned out, I was able to get out of Indianapolis for a couple of days, I got to see a different culture and was able to get a small taste of Europe. I will begin planning a Spring Holiday to Germany - and ONLY Germany. I've decided I will NEVER attempt to travel across water via the Chunnel (on purpose, because hopefully one day I will get to ride on the Chunnel...) without having another plan. I do hope that I can make it back to London soon. If that's my only destination, then I should have a lot less stress and be able to enjoy it even more than I did this time. It was a lot of fun, and I look forward to going back. It would be a little more fun if I had someone to go with me, and share everything with, but I don't really know anyone who has the same interest as me in going over there just to hang out. It was a GREAT holiday, and I look forward to many more trips to Europe in the near future.

From Heathrow, I rode the Underground to Picidilly Circus - this was the first thing I saw when I came up from the Underground Station.

I walked to Trafalgar Square, which was a cool place to hang out.

From Trafalgar Square, you could look south and see Big Ben.

A closer look at Big Ben.

My first 500ml Pepsi!

My hotel room, nice and small and quaint.

The Hard Rock London, where I are dinner my first night in town.

The first thing I ever spend a Pound on was a West Ham United Scarf. I bought it at a street vendor near Leicester Square. It was £5.00, which is roughly ten bucks.

Kinder Surprises were everywhere - yippy! And I also tried a Bounty drink, which was basically chocolate milk with 5% Coconut Milk. It was really good, but really rich! I regularly buy Bounty Candy Bars in the international aisle at Meijer. Basically, a better version of Mounds.

My waitress at The Hard Rock sat down with me at took the time to write me up a list of some of the best bars and clubs in both London and Paris. It was pretty nice of her.

Grand Victoria Station - the upstairs train portion.

The stadium for West Ham United Football Club in Upton Park.

The Tower Bridge, with some cool war ship in front of it.

The London Bridge.

Picidilly Circus at night.

These pictures can't even begin to explain how much fun I had, and sadly a number of places I went to were at night, so the pictures didn't turn out very well. It was an amazing time, I really felt comfortable there. Everyone I talked to was really nice, and really cool. The Underground Attendants were helpful and friendly I hope to make it back sooner than later. Cheers, Mate!

Day of Double Disappointment

Woke up early yesterday and drove over to Cincinnati with a couple of friends to catch the Cubs/Reds Game at Great American Ballpark. It was a really good time, and I thought we had pretty good seats.

The Cubs were winning 3-1 going into the bottom of the ninth. An error at second base ended up loading the bases, and two batter later, the Cubs lost 4-3. It was a pretty depressing afternoon, and sad to see the large number of Cubs fans end up leaving as losers. I should try to get to more baseball games next year, even if it is just the Indians. I had a good time.

Following the Cubs loss, I felt that I still had the evening to look forward to, since I was coming back to Indy and heading to Lucas Oil Stadium for the first game of the 2008 NFL Season. My hopes were high, and I had no concerns for the Colts to pull off a win.

I went from being a Pro-Chicago fan, rooting for the Cubbies to an anti-Chicago person, rooting against the Bears.

Our seats at the Lucas Oil Stadium were pretty good.

The Giant American Flag that covered the field for the National Anthem.

There was a fly over by a number of helicopters.
It was pretty cool.

Sadly, the game proved that I can be disappointed twice in one day, in two different cities, by two different teams in two different sports.

Am I upset? Yes. But, am I crazy-pissed-off? No. I am okay with the lose. It was kind of a humbling experience for us.

In 2005, we started 13-0.
In 2006, we started 9-0, before losing to the Cowboys.
In 2007, we started 7-0, before losing to the Patriots.

I think there was just a little too much pressure each season, as the season went on. I'm hoping that all of the pressure is now gone. Now, we can just go out and play football for the remainder of the season. I also hope that we end the season somewhere around 12-4, and third in the AFC. I don't want a Bye in the Opening Round of the playoffs. I want to play. Every post-season that we've had a bye, has resulted in a lose in the second round. The year we won the Super Bowl was the year we were 3rd in the AFC, and had to play each week.

There was obvious rust on Peyton Manning's part. But, it wasn't like he played like Rex Grossman, or anything. He played well. 30/49 and 257 yards is a pretty normal game. Maybe a few too many incompletes than normal, but no interceptions. We went 5/11 on Third Downs for 45%, a little lower than normal.

Jamey Richard, a rookie, took Jeff Saturday's place at Center. I am sure that Peyton and Jamey worked a lot together during the week, but it just didn't look right in the game. Also, at the same time, I don't think Richard did a good job of calling out protections for Peyton, like Saturday is so known for doing. It seemed that Peyton was rushed a little too much, aslo I think the Offensive Line needed some work. Only two of the 5 guys are even the same as last season - Ugoh and Diem. The pocket seemed to collapse really quickly, and this forced Peyton to through a little quicker and faster than he normally would want to, and I feel that resulted in some of his slow passes and some of his low passes. For last night being Peyton's only game play in 8 months, I don't think he performed that badly. I think he showed some good things, but also showed that he's going to need a little work to get back to where he is supposed to be, and where he wants to be - and where all fans want him to be.

And I have to give the Bears Defense credit. I feel that they played really well. They shut down Joseph Addai like I have never seen before. 44 yards of our 53 rushing yards are Addai. Both numbers are pathetic. Again, I don't think the offensive line did a good job of creating holes and gaps for Addai.

And our defense SUCKED. Plain and simple. We had some good hits, and it was good to see Bob Sanders running and hitting like a maniac - but it just wasn't enough. The Bears just ran too well for us to stop. Matt Forte just went off, and was impossible for our guys to stop. They executed their game plan perfectly, and it was effective against us.

Leaving the game, I learned justhow annoying the Bears fans were. There were too many in the stadium, in my opinion, and they were just obnoxious and annoying. I don't include my friends Jae or Stacy in this group - they weren't part of the drunken morons I had to deal with last night.

It was a disappointing day, and a really bummer for the Colts. I'm really scared about next weekend and Adrian Peterson. If Matt Forte can run like that against us, I can't even imagine what Peterson can do against us. I'm going to have to figure out something to make sure I can watch the game. Since the 2003 season, I have not missed watching a Colts game live on television. I hope to find a place in Munich to watch the game. Worst case scenerio, I will find an internet cafe and watch the gamecast of the game. Hopefully, with another week of practice, more and more of the rust and cobwebs can be shaken off, and everyone can work at getting back into a nice flow together. I believe things are going to get better, and at least the early loss teaches us to never take our wins for granted, and to make it back to the Super Bowl this season, we have a lot of work that we are going to have to do.

The AFC really changed yesterday.
The Colts lost.
The Chargers lost.
And the Patriots have lost their quarterback, mostly likely for the reast of the season.

The Steelers looked good.
The Jets looked good.
The Bills looked good.

It's going to be an interesting season to watch...

Finally, as we were walking back to the car, I overheard someone make this moronic comment:
"This is what happens when we change arenas. The Pacers leave Market Square Arena, and now they suck - the Colts leave the Dome, and now they are going to suck."

IDIOT. I can't believe someone would say something like that. First, because its one Colts game. Second, because they are WRONG.

Conseco Fieldhouse opened in 1999. It was the 1999-2000 season that the Pacers FINALLY made it to the NBA Finals. NEVER did they make it there while playing in Market Square Arena, and they only made it to the ABA Finals when playing in the Pepsi Coliseum. So, to say that they Pacers sucked after moving to Conseco is idiotic. Now, if he doesn't like the Pacers, and doesn't remember the season we won 61 games in the 2003-04 season. That doesn't sound like a team that sucks to me. Have the always under-performed? Sure, maybe you can say that. And we have had some bad seasons, but I would never claim that they have sucked since moving into Conseco Fieldhouse. Sorry, I needed to vent about that moronic statement.

RIP - Mr. Melendez

Bill Melendez, a friend and counterpart to Charles Schulz has passed away.

Melendez animated all of the Peanuts Classics, and was a part of the trio of men who brought Charlie Brown and the gang to television.

It's kind of a bummer. He was a good man, Bill Melendez...


Also, the film world has taken a hit with the death of Don LaFontaine. Bummer. Too many deaths in 2008.

Sunny Skies Don't Always Mean It's a Bright Day

UPDATE - July 14th 12:29pm:
GRANDMA'S OBITUARY from the Times-Republican.
GRANDMA'S OBITUARY from the Funeral Home.
There's not a lot there, but it's something.

It's a beautiful day outside, here in Indianapolis.
The sun is shining, and its a fair 80 degrees, not too hot.
Under different circumstance, I would love to be outside finishing "Marley & Me" or heading to the pool to get wet and soak up some more sun.

It's been a long time coming, and I've been doing my best to prepare myself for this event. At 9:13am this morning, I lost my other Grandmother. My Father's Mother died three years ago now. It's hard to believe it was that long ago. The other thing that's somewhat depressing is that I have not gone back to Iowa, since Kristen and I went back for her funeral. Meaning, I had not seen my Mother's Mother in over four years. It's amazing how fast time flies, but it all seems to slow down and come into perspective when an event like this happens. I feel like a bad family member, for not making an attempt to get back to Iowa AT ALL in the past four years. I'll easily fly to Boston or Los Angeles for a weekend to hang out with my friends, but I never made the effort to and visit my aging grandparents. Perhaps I continued to live in this small, pathetic world where I thought this couldn't happen. I don't know if I've accepted that my Grandma White is gone, and I don't know how long its going to take to accept Grandma Flather's death.

The past two months have kind of prepared me for this event, but I kept having hope that things weren't going to go this way. My Grandparents live in a small town in Iowa, called Marshalltown. It's about an hour north of the capital of Iowa, Des Moines. About two months ago, Grandma Flathers was taken to the hospital for some problems. The next two months of her life would become a roller-coaster of health. She'd be extremely ill and spend a week in the hospital, then she would seem to recover, and eventually get sent home. Usually this would only last a day, or two, before she would have to make another trip to the hospital, and spend more nights there. I can't even remember the numers of surgeries she's had, it seems like the wonderfully high-paid doctors couldn't figure out exactly what was wrong with her. They found a part of her small intestine that was dead - so they removed that. They found other problems, and tried to fix them. Ultimately, it seems like all they did was prolong her life ever so briefly.

My Mother would constantly send Scott and I emails - pretty much daily - updating us on what was going on. Sadly, the one day that I attempted to call my Grandmother in the hospital, she was asleep, and I only got to speak to my Grandfather. After that day, my Mother would tell me in emails, "it wasn't a good day for Grandma, I'd wait a day or two before trying to call her..." It just never seemed to be a good day, and I never got the chance to talk to her. While driving home from my parent's house today, it took me a long time to think back to when I last talked to my Grandmother. Finally, I'm pretty sure that I talked to her on my birthday. I remember being at my parent's house, and my mother bringing me her cell phone so that my Grandparents could tell me "Happy Birthday". My Grandmother had been in and out of the hospital, and never able to send me a birthday card this year. I was told that she was very sorry that she never got it sent.

There was a brief point, a little over two weeks ago, where it looked like I was going to skip my Great Vacation '08 to Wisconsin and end up going to Iowa. My parents spent the 4th of July week/weekend back in Marshalltown, providing support to my Grandfather - along with many of my Aunts and Uncles. I seriously considered backing out of the Wisconsin Dells trip, and making the trip with my parents. But, a few days before I left for Wisconsin, Grandma seemed to be doing better. So, I went ahead and made the choice to continue with my vacation with my friends. The reports I got from my mother that week made it sound like things were getting better, so I wasn't too worried. Remember, I live in this little fantasy world, were nothing bad would happen to my family.

I got the bad news around 10:30pm last night. I was out at the bar, with a ton of friends. A friend of mine was in town from Arizona, so we were hanging out and having a good time. I had talked to my parents during the day, and I knew that Grandma had been taken back to the hospital in Marshalltown, and they had determined that they needed to rush her to the hospital in Des Moines. My Uncle and Cousin were in Tennessee, drag racing this weekend, so they swung up to Indy and picked up my Mother to take her back to Iowa with them. But, when my phone rang late at night, and it was my Father, I had a bad feeling. I went outside, and answered the phone and found out what happened at the hospital. The doctors cut open my Grandmother, and didn't do anything. They immediately sewed her back up and told my relatives that there was nothing they could do for her. Her body was basically shutting itself down and various parts were beyond repair.

Luckily, my Uncle Don and my Mother made it to the hospital in time to talk to her.

Death really puts lots of things into perspective. It's one of the few, true, set-in-stone defininates in life. There's no reversing it. I've had a number of conversations in the past week, discussing the death of Heath Ledger. With "The Dark Knight" opening this coming weekend, I know its been on a lot of people's minds, and I've talked with a number of people about how sad it is that such an amazing actors had to die so young. He will NEVER do another role. But, as sad as that fact is, it's worse to know that I'll never get another birthday card from my Grandma Flathers.

I owe a special THANK YOU to all my friends who I was hanging out with last night. Troy, most of all. Troy was with me when I was on the phone with my Mother, trying to find out exactly what was going on. Troy was ready to drop everything and drive me out to Iowa to be with my Grandmother. Just the gesture meant a lot to me. I got numerous hugs from Brandy, Amanda, and Stephanie. And my Dudes were very supportive and helping as well. Jason randomly called me, and he allowed me to vent to him about things. Also, Dave Maier was kind enough to call and check in on me today. Its times like these that I realize I have such good friends. I hope they know how appreciated their concern is.

So, I'm pulling a double at work tomorrow. Then, its off to Iowa for the rest of the week. Showing, Funeral, Crappy-Circumstances Family Reunion. I'll get to see a lot of my family that I haven't seen in over four years, so I suppose its good that I'm going back, I only wish it was under better circumstances, and I wish I had done a better job of making my way back to Iowa before now. I think I am going to make a purposeful and conscious effort EVERY year to at least get back to Iowa for a couple of days. Just to spend some time with both of Grandfathers. Because, who knows how long they have left. My Grandpa White was in town with my Aunt and Uncle the night before I left for Wisconsin, and sadly it didn't even seem like my Grandpa remembered me. It was a little depressing, but aside from that: Grandpa White can still play Pinnochle pretty darn good!

Now that I've gotten all this off my chest, maybe I can actually go outside and enjoy some of this bright and sunny weather. The back porch, a Blue Moon, and my book...

Mealtime at Cabela's

Zach had never been to a Cabela's, so we stopped at one on the way
back home today. They have the Fox River Cafe inside, so that's where
we at lunch at. I had a Venison Brat, and it was amazing! I also
purchased some beef sticks made from Elk, Venison and Buffalo.

R.I.P. Rufus

I know he's famous for a lot of different things, but he'll always just be Rufus to me.

Sadly, comedian George Carlin passed away on Sunday, at the age of 71.

His stand-up was hilarious, and I always wished Rufus would bring a telephone booth into my life.

He was also funny in "Dogma" and "Jersey Girl".

USA Today article.
New York Times article.

"The Happening" Review

DO NOT SEE THIS FILM!!!!!
Seriously. DEAD SERIOUS.
Watch the Red Band Trailer - and you've seen the film.
Yep, I spoiled it for you.
NOTHING ELSE HAPPENS in this film.
YOU LEARN NOTHING MORE than what they tell you in the preview.
It is a COMPLETE WASTE of time.
Watch the 2 1/2 minutes - and save 91 minutes of your life.

Honestly, I think I'm going to make it my mission to prevent ANYONE I know from going to see this film. M. Night Shyamalan has hit a horrible low on this film. WHY do I ever believe he's going to deliver a "good" film? DOWNHILL: "The Village" = Mediocre. "Lady in the Water" = Nothing Good to Say. "The Happening" = WORST FILM I've seen in a long time, and my new mission to RUIN the film. RUIN.

You're going to wish you listened to me...

"Green Street Hooligans" Review

This film is one that I wanted to see a long time ago. For some reason, I think Justin owns it, but I never borrow it from him. I should have. Because, I really enjoyed the flick.

It's got two things that I'm really interested in: Football (Soccer) and London.

The flick opens with Elijah Wood's character, Matt, getting kicked out of Harvard. He took the fall for his roommate, to save him from getting expelled - because his roommate's father is in politics.

Matt then heads over to London to meet up with his sister - played by the beautiful Claire Forlani, and he meets his brother-in-law, Steve, for the first time. Not long after he arrives, he's hanging out with Steve's brother, Pete. Pete quickly introduces him to his world of Football.

Here's the thing about Pete: From the first time I saw him, I swore I know the actor - but I couldn't figure out who it was. Halfway through the flick I had to look it up, because it was bothering me so badly. It turns out the he's played by Charlie Hunnam - who played Jay Baruchel's British Thespian Roommate Lloyd, on "Undeclared". I didn't recognize him with his head shaved in this film, but I knew I knew the actor - and I was right. So, that was a pretty cool added bonus to the film.

So, the flick starts off as a Football Film. The first 30 minutes or so are really about this group of guys and their love for West Ham United, it follows them from the pub to the stadium. Following his first game, Matt gets involved in his first fight. And then the film strays away from it's focus on football, and transfers to this group of guys and their loyalties.

Despite his being a "Yank", Matt quickly earns credit within the group of men. There's some pretty typical dramatic moments in the film, and it has a couple of small twists, but nothing that's outrageous. And one of them I feel pretty stupid for not putting together on my own.

Near the end, it does a good job of testing character's loyalties and their promises they've made. And when some of the main characters have to make choices, it's done in a very dramatic fashion that comes off sincere.

I really enjoyed the film, and I thought the acting was pretty good for what it was. It's not an overly dramatic film, and there's not really any seriously dramatic scenes that required exquisite top-notch acting. So, the story itself did a pretty good job of keeping me entertained, and I was never bored.

4 Stars out of 5.

"Reservation Road" Review

Okay, I'll be honest - the only reason I added this flick to my Netflix Queue was because of the cast. I didn't think it sounded super interesting, but it had three actors that I REALLY like in it, so I thought I would give it a shot.

Joaquin Phoenix ("Return to Paradise") and Jennifer Connelly ("The Rocketeer") star as a couple who have a son that is killed in a hit and run accident. Mark Ruffalo ("You Can Count on Me") stars as the man who drove the car that killed their son.

The acting is AMAZING. Really. Joaquin appears completely different, with a beard, and plays the upset and confused father role to perfection. His obsessive nature begins to cause turmoil with his wife, and they have some amazing scenes together - arguing over how each one of them is grieving. It's some powerful stuff.

Mark Ruffalo does an amazing job of playing a man burdened by guilt, and is constantly attempting to convince himself to do the right thing. He too does a really good job.

My biggest issue with the film is that it relies too much on the "small town" aspect of things to get the story moving. There are too many characters that intertwine into the lives of the two main groups of people, and too many things are left to chance. Needless to say, I know this type of thing must happen everyday in America, and 99% of the time its never resolved - but maybe this script focuses on one of those small towns in the Northeast (where everyone is a Red Sox fan!) and its a place where you can constantly interact with someone who killed your son, and not even know it. I don't know. I just didn't buy the believability of that aspect of the story.

It's also a SLOW film. It's very emotion-driven. And to be honest, it's a good thing I watched it at work, where I had nothing else to do. Because if i were at home with all of the distractions of home - then I may never have gotten through the entire film, or if I did - I wouldn't have paid attention to half of it.

And the worst part is the anti-climactic ending. It really falls short of delivering me any kind of "pay off" for watching the first hour and a half. Aside from the character study - that is the middle of the film - there's really not much else to watch in this one. Just some amazing performances, ruined by a bleak story that is about as interesting as a heart monitor on a dead person.

Result: 2 1/2 Stars out of 5.

Circa Ten Years Later

Today is my birthday.
Big deal.
I've never been one to celebrate birthdays, and this year is worse than normal.

I'm 28. I graduated High School ten years and three days ago.

Three days before I turned 18, I graduated from Lawrence Central.

I was a high school senior, with big dreams in my eyes. And ten years later, I have to look back at those big dreams...

I wanted to be married. And I was. And it was amazing. Sadly, for various reasons it didn't work out. I miss how prooud my parents were of me. This girl caused me to "settle down". My parents loved her, my grandparents loved her, I was madly in love with her, and then my world came crashing down. Between now and 30 was when I thought that "kids" would come into play. Sadly, that didn't happen. And sadly, I doubt anyone will ever want to commit to me, and do the whole kids thing. It just doesn't look to be in my cards.

I wanted to be a lawyer. Yeah, that didn't last long. It wasn't too long before I decided I wanted to be a filmmaker, which changed my goals to finishing film school. While I tried TWICE to become a film student - I failed both times. I also failed when I tried to be a German Major. I just don't seem to be good at school. Also, I love making money, and I tried to supper my ex-wife while she was in school. Either way, I was a loser in comparison to where I wanted my life to be. School just did not work out. And for those who didn't know: I was pre-law when I graduated high school. I picked my girlfriend over college - and that screwed up my life. Who knows where I could have been, if I just cut ties and moved on. Went to college in Kentucky - met new people - and didn't live the life I did. Probably never would have lived in California, and I never would have met Kristen - who I believed (and somewhat still do) to be the Love of My Life. But, instead I picked a girl - because I thought she made me happy.

That was a BIG mistake in my life. Because not only did "She" cause me to be physically damaging to my body (tried to slit my wrist), she permanently screwed me up me up emotionally and psychologically - she caused me a large amount of legal trouble. Legal trouble that I wish was not on my record, and was not public knowledge - especially since she made lots of false claims - and never showed up in court, because she know they were false.

Her psychological mis-treatment of me led to my (now expunged) "criminal" record. It was the lowest point in my life. Spending time in a "mental treatment facility" and making HORRIBLE personal decisions. Drugs, alcohol, and theft. They all added up to a long list of dis-appointments I caused in my parents life. It was probably the WORST time of my life - and if not for my Father and Danny Smith, I probably would have ended up dead. I can vividly remember the day my Mother asked me to come to her office - and I was "ambushed" by Dad and Danny - and immediately taken to Charter Hospital (which doesn't exist anymore...). I was SO MAD at that point - but I now realize that it was a turning point in my life. And if not for the three of them, I probably would have ended up dead near that time. I was at a very destructive point, and needed intervention to improve my living condition.

So, the "roller coaster" of the last ten years started out on a low. It came up high when I was working on "Consternate" with Jason. My "big sister" Brandy James was one of the few people who helped me through my "low" emotional time, and I remember the night I spent at her house, with Joe Langlais and Jason Maier. It changed my life forever, because it was the night Jason and I decided to renew our High School Friendship (I still have the picture of Jason, Joe and I on graduation night...) and it was not too much longer before I was talking about making a film with Jason. Jason's older brother - Dave - helped me get back on my feet with a job, and getting fired from Clearwater was another low-point my life, when I knew I let down both David and Jason. Once again, I just became a "screw up" in everyone's eyes.

I moved to California. It was my first attempt at being an "adult" on my own. It lasted six months. It should have lasted longer, but I was somewhat homesick - and scared to make long-term commitments to live with people I didn't know. I took the easy way out, and now I regret it. I did NOT regret it while I was married, because my return to Indy resulted in meeting Kristen, and being happily (at first) married. But, while I lived in Los Angeles, I was involved with a very cool and beautiful Latino girl - who could have broken my heart just as easily as Kristen did. Small pain, different city, less moving. I could have dealt with that. I should have moved in with Sergio, Eli or Hans - the three people who offered my a place to live, when I got semi-kicked out of my living place.

Life went pretty good from the end of 2001 until the middle of 2006. I came back to Indy, I met Kristen, I got married, my parents were proud of me, my family started seeing me as an adult, I got treated different, I felt like an adult - life was good. Then, for various reason - which I'm sure were my fault - I disappointed everyone by screwing up my relationship with Kristen, and the end result was divorce. While I just wanted a "break" and some time apart to think about things, I was suddenly served with divorce papers. It turned out Kristen knew what she wanted, and did NOT need time to think about it. I failed as a husband in the last ten years. I gave one woman everything I possibly could, and I got served with divorce papers in the end, and was denied ever seeing my dog - which I raise from a puppy. I know I was at fault, and I know I did a lot of things wrong - but given some time to think, I know I would have attempted to reconcile with Kristen. But, that's not what she was interested in. She didn't love me, she didn't want me. And she made that very clear. I failed at being a husband, I failed at being a significant other, and I failed in everyone's eys because someone wanted to divorce me. It was NOT what I wanted, but I have always wanted to make Kristen happy - so I did not fight her. And that was a mistake. If I asked the judge to order counseling - then maybe we could have worked things out. But, I didn't. Once again, it was my fault.

Basically, when I turned 18, my parent's allowed me to become an adult. I suppose it was an experiment to see if I could live up to their first 18 years of "training". I know in the past ten years, I've done a lot of things they are not proud of. I know I still do things that they do not approve of. I know I don't seem to be as religious as they would like - which goes back to my distaste for established religion, and my fight for spirituality to be between ME and GOD and NO ONE else. I know I've disappointed them. I'm only human. But, the best part is that my parents still love me. Despite all the things I do wrong. Despite my divorce, and my shaming their name and their family - they still love me. They are true examples of Unconditional Love. Obviously better than I can be, as I failed in marriage, and may never have the chance to give them grandchildren.

Ten Years and three days later. WHAT do I have to be happy about on this birthday?

I've got awesome parents, who I've already explained to be the epitome of Unconditional Love.

I've got a cool brother, who is fun to talk to, despite our different lifestyles and goals.

I've got Jason L. Maier, and his wife, who allow me to come to Boston and visit them when I need a break from Indianapolis. They allow me to invade their lives, and hang out.

I've got Zach Proctor - who I have known for 15 years, over HALF of my life. I've also got Jenny, Zach's wife. Who, despite being friends with Kristen, is still willing to be friends with me. She won't pick sides, she still defends Kristen when I talk about her, but (from what I'm told) she defends me against Kristen's comments.

I've got Sergio. My closest friend while I lived in California, and the ONLY person I can call at 2am (because that's only 11pm to him!!!) when I am depressed and need someone to talk to, or vent to, or cry to. And he listens to it all.

I've got Phil. I share a townhouse with a really cool, really easy-going, really laid back person, who I've never been in a fight (physical or verbal) with.

I've got Troy, who I can always count on to make me laugh and smile anytime we hang out. From poker nights to me teaching him how to work Blogger - I just really enjoy spending time with him.

I've got David Maier. A man who I've always looked up to. A family man, who is a real inspiration. A man who has such a beautiful and perfect family, that I could only dream of having something half as good as he does - and only wish Kristen and I worked out as well as Dave and Jennifer did - with Samantha and Drew as proof of their love and hard work. The entire Maier Clan is amazing - and know how to love families.

I've also got a very large group of friends, who I love to hang out with in their own time. From Justin and Fallon to Kyle and Elise. From Samir to Michael Maier. From Matt ("Cheech") and Lily to Matt ("Bear") and Andy to Eddie and Aaron. I've been able to make a lot of friends - all of whom accept me for who I am, and treat me like a real person.

So, here I am. Ten years and three days later. So much to think about. Basically a third of my life has gone by. There's been up, there's been downs. I've been happy, and I've been depressed. I'm made films, and I've been in love.

Despite all the failures and shortcomings that I feel responsible for, I have lived my life. And for the most part, I've live it how I wanted to. So, sitting here, right now, on my 28th Birthday - all I can do is Thank God that I am alive. Thank God that I loved someone as much as a loved Kristen. Thank God for protecting me, and getting me this far along in life. And Thank God for blessing me with the people who have watched over me, protected me, and kept me out of more trouble.

The past tens are FAR, FAR, FAR from what I wanted them to be.

But, they've made me who I am today.

And when I look back, despite all the heartache, despite all the pain, despite all of the nights I've cried myself to sleep: I've got the most important things in the world. Family. Friends. And people who act like they love me. So, despite how much I feel like a failure - I know I've got people who tell this Failure to keep trying. And maybe one day, I'll make them all proud of me. I can only hope that I can re-gain trust in all of the people I've let down.

So, right now, I vow to make the next ten years of my life - Better than EVER before.

"Live like you mean it. / Love 'til you feel it. / It's all that we've got in our lives..."

And, I just want to take one second to say THANK YOU SO MUCH to all the people who have helped me through the rough times, the good times, and the times I don't want to talk about. Without each one of you - Shane wouldn't be celebrating 28 years. I'm only alive this day, due to my friends and family who have kept me off the destructive path I started 10 years ago.

I promise to make the next ten years better than last.

Two Quick Documentary Reviews

Tonight - at work - I utilized Netflix's powers of watching films online, to watch two documentaries.

The first was "Girl 27" and it was pretty interesting and informational at first, but the second half of the film was kind of flat. It revolves around a Day Player in Hollywood in the 1930s. She went to what she thought was a casting call, and later found out she was being used as "entertainment" for an MGM Salesman. That night, she was raped. The most interesting parts of the documentary are those that reveal how much Los Angeles was under the control of film studios - especially MGM - and how they stone-walled the investigation and the trial. Serious conspiracy theory stuff, and it was interesting. But, like I said, the second half just seems to drag on.

Secondly, I watched "Deliver Us From Evil" and it was a very disturbing documentary that involves a Catholic Priest, who admits to many cases of sexual assault on children. Hearing the interviews of various people (the children, now grown up) who were assaulted by this man, are pretty freaky. There are interviews with their parents, and descriptions of how this man - Oliver O'Grady - was able to manipulate families and work his way into taking advantage of these children. The hardest to watch was the boy, who finally admitted to what was done to him, and the fact that this Priest was also having a sexual relation with his married mother - at the same time - in order to keep her quiet about what he was doing to her son. It's insane! Crazy, and it often made me squirm, thinking about what this man did for roughly 20 years. CRAZY!

The films ends with a number of "facts". The one I found most disturbing was:

In 2005, George W. Bush granted immunity to Pope Benedict XVI, from a lawsuit filed against him, claiming that he helped with the cover-up of sexual assault on young boys. HERE is an article from the First Amendment Center. Crazy, crazy, crazy...

The documentary was kind of tough to watch. But, pretty interesting at the same time. Especially with the large number of interviews from Father O'Grady, and his attitudes towards what he did. There are lots of deposition interviews included in the documentary.

I give both of them 3 out of 5 Stars.

Been Kinda Nostalgic, A Hidden Documentary Review

This story goes back a few nights. It begins one night when I came home, kinda late, and found Phil and a friend of his watching "Consternate". I, of course, had to kick back and watch some of it with them. Like always, it got me thinking about how much fun that time of my life was.

The past two nights, I've had the pleasure of spending my evenings with Zach and Jenny Proctor. And last night, I asked Zach if he missed the times when we used to make films. And he claimed that he did. I told him I had been thinking about it a lot recently.

That brings us to tonight. Around 11pm, I was trying to watch the end of the Celtics game and I ended up falling asleep. When I woke up to the news, I decided it was time to call it a night. Obviously, I worked a little too hard today, and all those hours of playing Wii must have worn me out. I came upstairs, I turned on the DVD player - hit Play on "Cheers" and laid down for the night.

About 20 minutes later the phone rang. A Mister Jason L. Maier was calling to talk while he was driving home. We talked for a good 30 minutes or so, and I found myself wide awake. So, I decided to go downstairs and pop in one of my Netflix films.

Tonight's flick was "Show Business: The Road to Broadway". It was a Documentary that I read about on another blog, so I added it to my Netflix Queue, and since I've been in a documentary mood recently, I moved it up to the top. Jason and I also talked about the flick, while we were on the phone - which is partially what put the idea to watch it into my head. I asked him if he had seen it, and he told me he does own it, and has attempted to watch it once, but was interrupted and has never finished it.

For the most part, I enjoyed the documentary. It covered two shows that I was aware of - thanks to Jason - and two shows that I knew nothing about. I think I would have rather seen some more of the actual behind-the-scenes production than what was included, but overall it covered the shows and their writers/directors/producers pretty well. Sadly, it was NOT anywhere near as good as "No Day But Today: The Story of Rent", but it did have more material to cover, and attempt to tie together for a cohesive storyline. It did do an amazing job of showing the time, love, and determination that goes into producing Broadway productions.

And it reminded me, once again, how much I miss being a part of a large collective group of people, attempting to create a beautiful piece of art...

"Speed Racer" Review

"Speed Racer" Review coming shortly...

"Real Work" needs to get done...

"Redbelt" Review

After I took Amanda home, I was up in Noblesville and Phil mentioned that we was thinking about watching "Speed Racer" last night. So, I called him to see if he was still going to, and he told me that the earliest we could watch it was 11:35pm, but if I wanted to - he would run the print. So, I told him I would come up and hang out with him until then (since I was already all the way up in Noblesville anyways...). So, I get to Phil's theatre, we hang out a little bit and then I realize that his theatre is playing "Redbelt". It's a film I was really interested in watching, and thought I was going to have to find the time to go to Landmark to watch it. As fate would have it, "Redbelt" started two minutes after I arrived, and it got over at 11:40pm. Phil said he'd have "Speed Racer" ready when I was done - so I was off to a second movie.

"Redbelt" is a David Mamet film, and I think it's better to let people know that before they go into the film. I'm the ONLY person I know who liked the film "Spartan". Although, I know a number of people who enjoyed "State and Main". The film I consider him most appealing was "Glengarry Glen Ross", which he only wrote. Although, I suppose more people are probably familiar with "Ronin", yet another good film he wrote.

The biggest complaint about Mamet films are the lack of diversity in his characters. Many of them use the same types of language and idioms, and almost all sound like clones of one another. Some might say that its due to the fact that Mamet attempts to give us one small niche, and not a broad picture. In his small niches of characters, they are people who all do talk and act the same, because they have grown up together in the same neighborhood and spent the lives working together. I can buy that, and that's good - because many of the characters in "Redbelt" seem to talk and act like they've all lived on the same block for 30 years, even the Hollywood Actor.

I'm a big fan of Chiwetel Ejiofor, basically the first time I remember seeing him was "Love Actually". Then he popped up in "Four Brothers" and "Serenity". Especially after "Serenity", I decided I wanted to keep an eye on this dude, because of his wide variety of character portrayals. I liked him in "Inside Man", but missed him in "American Gangster" - Note to self: Add that to your NetFlix. I do have "Dirty Pretty Things" in my NetFlix, which I hear is a GREAT flick, I should probably move it up...

Now, back to Chewie. He's amazing in this film as Mike Terry, the protagonist who teaches Jujitsu. His attitude and demeanor are perfect, and he plays a man who knows all the angles to everything. "There is no situation that you can not escape from" is the mantra he preaches throughout the film. And his character does an amazing job of sticking to his beliefs, all the way to the end - no matter how hard things get for him.

Much like "Spartan", the film just throws us into the action, without very much set up. We are introduced to Mike Terry teaching his class, and following his class we introduced to what seems to be a completely random woman, who would later become very pivotal in many of the events to come.

Through a series of events, Mike finds himself at the same bar as an Actor, Chet Frank - played by Tim Allen - and when Allen's character is attached Mike rescues him. This begins a "friendship" between the two men. A "friendship" that is not at all as it seems.

As the film progress, and Mike gets involved as a producer on Chet's current film, Mike meets more and more people and believes he is networking with them, only to be cold-shouldered and learn that everything he was helping with on the film has been stolen from him, and in turn used to create a new style of Mixed-Martial Arts fighting.

Every character in the film does an amazing job of two-facing themselves. The actors were perfect. And the as the plot continues to unfold, you get to see - as Mike does - the evil nature of people, as they all continue to stab him in the back. And when it's all said and done, and Mike's got nowhere left to turn, and it looks like he has lost everything, his character makes a choice the goes against his entire teaching philosophy, and he is forced to fight in the MMA Event. It's an amazing character struggle, and watching Mike constantly hope and believe that he can make things better is amazing to watch. He's struggling with so many different things, and everything continues to snowball down on top of him, and he is finally forced to make move that he considers defaming to his character, but it is the only move he has to "escape".

About the only complaint I have about the film is this: I like ambiguous endings, but this one might have been a little too much, even for me. I like how it ended, but I didn't like the number of questions that are still left unanswered when the credits begin to roll. Too many things are brought up during the climax - and then there is basically zero falling action or resolution. I'm not saying it ruined the film, but it's the only thing I didn't really like about it.

Overall, I think its one of the best concepts I've seen recently - I'm TIRED of sequels and remakes!!! And I think all of the acting is top-notch quality. I highly recommend the flick, I think its a good example of original and intriguing filmmaking.

"What Happens in Vegas" Review

I'll be honest, I had absolutely no desire to see "What Happens in Vegas" at all. The preview really didn't look very good, and I wasn't going to waste my time.

Then, I was hanging out with my friend Amanda last night, and it was the last time I'll get to see her for a while - because right now she's waiting in Charlotte to catch a plane to Athens and then she'll be in Jordan for three weeks after that. We decided to hang out last night and I decided to let her pick the movie we were going to watch. So, I ended up seeing a movie I didn't have any intention of seeing.

Now, the good part was this: My intentions were so low, and I was expecting such a horrible film - that I actually enjoyed it for the most part. The storyline was nothing new or mind-bending. From the preview, you knew exactly what you were getting into, and you knew that even when things were looking good - they were going to turn bad, but then they would somehow all work out in the end. No big surprises, but that was fine.

The emotions that are tackled in this flick are actually pretty interesting. After the drunken "marriage" in Vegas - and the winning of $3 Million - Kuthcer and Diaz's characters have A LOT of baggage that ends up being addressed throughout the film. From the emotions of being dumped by someone, to the hope of reconciliation, to not living up to your parent's expectations, it was a lot to handle, and I felt like they handled it well.

I laughed a lot during the movie, I laughed A LOT more than I thought I was going to. Some running gags, some witty comments, it was a lot better than I thought. Although, I do ask myself this question: "Would I have laughed so much, if I was just watching it with a small group of people?" See, we went and watched the film in an almost sold-out auditorium at Castleton - and it's been a long-standing theory of mine, that when I see films in larger groups, I laugh more than when I just screen the films with small groups of friends. I'm going to continue to allow myself to believe that I did just enjoy the film for what it was: Entertainment, and nothing more. I don't think it was anything special cinematically, and I don't think it's the smartest thing ever written. But, for last night, it was what we were looking for. So, I'll just keep telling myself that I enjoyed it, despite the fact that I didn't want to.

"What Love Is" Review

This was the poster for the film when I was supposed to see it last March in Boston:
This is the DVD Cover for the film, when I finally got to see it on Friday:
"What Love Is" is the third film from Mars Callahan, who I began to admire when Zach and I went to Chicago to see his film "Poolhall Junkies" in February of 2002.

"What Love Is" is basically the epitome of a Guy's Break Up Movie. The entire film occurs in one night, and it just happens to be Valentine's Day. Tom - Cuba Gooding, Jr. finally in a good film - plays the main character, who comes home to find out that his girlfriend of 3 years has packed her bags and is moving out. She leaves him a letter, and the conveniently calls him after he reads it. She tells him that she's on her way to pick up her last bags. The bad news for Tom is that he's invited all of his friends over to hang out and celebrate Valentine's Day with them.

This begins a parade of characters entering Tom's townhouse - where the majority of the film takes place. It begins with one of my favorite actors, Matthew Lillard from "Scream" fame. Lillard plays Sal, who is a womanizing-fast-talking idealist, who has stern beliefs on a number of topics, and later in the film when he goes on an anti-gay tirade, it's some of the best handled dialogue I've ever heard. At first, I couldn't believe that GLAAD allowed this kind of dialogue, however throughout the scene, I think they allowed it because of the amazing retort by the gay friend, Wayne. Lillard does an amazing job, and I really like his charisma throughout the film. He's got an ego and an attitude, and he does a pretty amazing job with both of them.

Next up is the man himself: Mars Callahan who plays Ken, the married man, who sneaks out at night (he lives above Tom) to hang out with his friends. I kid you not: The dialogue between Sal and Ken is almost verbatim dialogue that Jason and I have had together. I believe that their dialogue is much more anger-filled than any time Jason and I have ever had it - but it is a very serious discussing about how truly successful married men will always pick their wives over their friends, and how they don't see that as a burden, but as an blessing. Seriously, my jaw dropped during the scene, thinking that Callahan had somehow been hiding in the back seat of Jason's car a year ago when I remember having the conversation while driving back to Boston from New York City. Ken is a really good character, who often plays devil's advocate to Sal's outrageously wild philosophies.

As I mentioned before, there is a gay character named Wayne, who came over to announce to everyone that he is running off to Hawaii with his new man to get married - and he wants Tom to come be his best man. Wayne is a very strong character, and doesn't allow Sal's belittling to effect him, instead he attacks Sal's lifestyle right back, and has some wonderful dialogue himself.

The final male character is played by Sean Astin, who really just serves as another voice to interject more opinions and points of view on various topics.

About halfway through the film, it shifts to a woman's perspective as a group of women, that Sal met at the bar, show up to party with the guys. The film temporarily shifts into the bathroom, as the women "freshen up". Honestly, I'm going to say that the dialogue is written as what men THINK women say in the bathroom. I'd like to believe that they act this way, and talk this way, and maybe some do, but I don't think the female dialogue is the most realistic. I have to believe its just a stereotypical male writing of females talking. The dialogue is quirky and interesting, and well delivered by the actresses, but I don't know if I can completely consider it realistic.

Then, the two group merge and play out the rest of film, as various men and women interact and openly discuss a variety of relationship and sexual topics.

I enjoyed the film, because it's written in a way that you know is not real. NO ONE talks the way these characters do. We all WISH we talked this way, we all WISHED we had these amazingly well-thought out discussions with our friends, when we don't. With the ranting and playful argumentative nature of the dialogue, we all wish we talked this way. It's the same thing with "Clerks", "Mallrats", "Chasing Amy", etc... NO ONE talks like the characters in a Kevin Smith movie, but we all wish that we did.

I don't think there's a middle ground to this film. Either you're going to love it, or you're going to hate it. I believe it's an acquired taste, much like many independently financed and produced films, and much like "Poolhall Junkies". If you don't care about pool, you're more than likely not going to be interested in a film about a fast-talking pool hustler., no matter how good the dialogue and story are: you're not going to care. I believe many of my friends would enjoy the flick, and those are the people I care about the most. Because those are the people that I associate with the film, and the people that I believe I talk to like the characters in the film.

I originally got the film via NetFlix, just in case it sucked. But, after I watched it - I went out and bought it the same day. I thought it was that enjoyable.