— Reading <Blood Meridian: Or the Evening Redness in the West
— Finished my 4th of the Master & Commander series – The Mauritius Command
— Watched Eastern Promises last night. Very good. Viggo Mortensen is riveting. There were some cliched moments in the plot – it was a little bit too “neat” for me (Naomi Watts’ character had lost her baby – so she becomes obsessed with the orphaned baby! And etc. Too neat.) – but he was amazing. You can’t take your eyes off him. I also loved the set design of the Russian restaurant “Trans-Siberian”. Awesome awesome atmosphere.
— I have become addicted to the Canadian television series Slings & Arrows, which I have been watching on DVD. More to come. I won’t write any more until I finish the whole thing (3 seasons). Kate sent me the first two seasons … not for any reasons, just because … and I can’t thank her enough for introducing me to this wonderful series. Mental Multivitamin has been raving about it for a while and I totally agree with her assessment: “Perfect and brilliant and perfectly brilliant”. It’s laugh out loud funny, but also poignant, and also gets – totally gets – what it is to be in the theatre. The absurdity (“Everyone cries when they get stabbed. There’s no shame in that!”) – but then the moment, the magical moment, when things come together … and the play comes to life. Marvelous. I can’t WAIT for season 3.
— I had sent a kind of yowl-of-loneliness email to Michael, telling him what’s going on right now, and normally I resist those yowls, but whatever, if you can’t let your friends in on what you’re going through, what good are they as friends? I got home last night and noticed he had called and left a message. Picked up the phone and his message not only brought a huge (almost embarrassingly huge) smile to my face – but it also made me cry. So I stood in my kitchen with a Humpty Dumpty smile and tears on my face. Awesome. Michael said, “I am here to give you a big voice-hug. Are you ready? Here it is.” There was a pause. And I then heard him hugging himself and making big “oomph” grunting noises – as though he were hugging me and squeezing me tight. It was hysterical!! I felt hugged, if you know what I mean. Michael also referred to his own voice as “sonorous” (“I figured you needed to hear my sonorous voice …”) and I just love him for being such a jagoff. He also said, “I’m coming to New York soon, so you will be able to see my rapidly aging face …” I love him.
— I have discovered the unbelievable pleasures of River Road – the road that goes along the bottom of the cliffs on my side of the Hudson. Much exploring to do. Not only that, but there’s a Target along that road. As well as a Whole Foods.
— I’m kind of obsessed right now with Dan Fogelberg’s song “The Phoenix”. Can’t stop listening to it.
— I went a little insane over the weekend and impulsively bought about 30 books on Amazon – all used, many of them were only one cent. Of course I have to pay for shipping and handling, so it added up – but not TOO much. I got 30 books for about 30 dollars … and now they have all started arriving. It’s like I went into a fugue state as I ordered the books … and forgot what I ordered. So it’s fun to open up the packages because I have no idea what’s inside. I bought all of SE Hinton’s books. I realized that it is just not right that I do not have a copy of Tex
— I’m sleeping pretty good. So for that I am grateful. Knock wood.
Wierd. I watched Eastern Promises last night as well. I was also very impressed with Mortensen (as always). I don’t want to place a spoiler for anyone…. but the fight? He really impressed me in that. He seemed so natural and the state he was in was almost unoticeable and completely a secondary issue due to the way he approached the scene. He fully commits. I love that.
And the Amazon mention made me long for those days when used books are arriving by mail. I LOVE getting used books in the mail. So yeah, it’s off to Amazon I go.
Marisa – yes, that fight was absolutely inCREDible. His nakedness was indeed totally secondary – phenomenal to watch those guys go at it. I’d love to see a mini-documentary about the filming of that scene – the fight choreography rehearsals, the whole nudity aspect, all of that … it was very complex, the tiles – the nudity – the sheer violence of that scene. SO well done.
So… I didn’t know what Slings & Arros was until I heard that Mark McKinney was involved. Being a long-time KitH person (with a bit of a crush on both Mark and Dave), I had to watch. I only started in when the secon season was on IFC, so I watched that, the third, and then made it back to the first. Isn’t it just wonderful? I love how the various members of the company parallel certain of Shakespeare’s “types” (how much do I love Frank and Cyril?), but just when you think you’ve got them down, they go and do something drastic, like stab someone or give up on their German modernist vision. I can’t even pick a favorite character because they all rely on each other so much. I think you’re going to like season 3. It’s a whole different creature.
I agree. I would love to see that. The thing is I was watching it for several minutes before his nudity even registered. Not that it’s in any way vague or obscured – it’s handled in completely the opposite way. They seem to have filmed it and had him approach it as if he simply wasn’t naked – and, frankly, it’s a completely logical decision and the reason the scene works SO well. If you’re fighting for your life, you don’t wase time on false modesty or grasping at your towel. It’s more efficient and natural for him to just abandon that – and he does. Completely. It was brilliant.
I wasn’t nuts about Watts in the film… but I don’t think she’s given a lot to do besides foolishly sticking her neck out. I DID think the chemistry between Mortensen and Watts was strong – as was the chemistry between Mortensen and Vincent Cassel. Cassel was reliably unnerving but also turned in a really nuanced performance – the monster who is also human and pitiable. A great film for people who love actors, you know? Just watching those two men knock it out of the park is kind of great.
Dude, I want to be buried with that Hitchcock/Truffaut book.
Marti – I love Frank and Cyril so much!! “Ever since that moment of inopportune fellatio I have been persona non grata!”
Favorite moments:
— when jerry has to go on as an understudy for Macbeth. The whole section of that performance just gives me GOOSEBUMPS
— the whole romance between Rachel McAdams and the American movie star – his struggle to do Hamlet – beautiful!!!
— Darren Nichols – the ridiculous director who can’t stand theatre
— I love the whole commerce vs. art thing – that awful woman on the board in the first season – she is SUCH a recognizable type to anyone who has worked in the theatre.
— I LOVE how Ellen has crazy affairs with young men … in the hopes that she will hang on to her youth – and it’s just so blatant!!
— And just the whole rehearsal process. I love, too, when Geoffrey does the corporate workshop in the first season, with the accountants and secretaries … that just gives me chills – when that nerdy accountant says the “tomorrow and tomorrow” speech and he’s riveting.
I LOVE THE WHOLE THING.
Can’t wait for season 3 – it is winging its way towards me right now!
Emily – I know!!! It’s a goldmine! I read it back in college but I don’t think I ever had my own copy – I’m really psyched to read it again!
How much do we love Truffaut? Not only do I love his questions, and his ideas, and his passion for his work – but I also just fucking love his FACE.
Hell yeah. He definitely had a very alluring kind of softness to him. Not just in his features, but in his demeanor. And I love, love, love how passionate his is about film. He publishes his essays under the title The Films in My Life. Not just his films, but ones he has seen. They’re not only movies. They’re not even works of art. They are pieces of his life. I absolutely ADORE that man.
“His is.” Put DOWN the crack pipe.
sheila – you must call me tonight!
Jean – I will! Sorry I missed your call yesterday!
Sheila, you really should check out the audio version of the Patrick O’Brian Aubry/Maturin books. The ones read by Patrick Tull. A different way to experience the books. Tull is outstanding.
Ahhh, Fogelberg’s Phoenix… Great stuff. His older stuff I think is still the best. He was a great great guy and gone far too soon. He was a local guy out here and would occasionally show up at the local bars and play under an alias.
Rude – Yeah, for some reason I’m just not as familiar with Phoenix as I am with his other songs – so it showed up on my iPod shuffle a couple days ago and I was like, Wow. Awesome song!!
I love that he would play under an alias! That’s pretty amazing! The comfort of playing small bars with small local crowds – I love that!
Yeah, he was quite a guy; he invited a bunch of us to his house for new years many years ago. A couple of us even got to play with him in his studio. I remember when he was working on “Wild Places” he played one of the tracks that was only about 1/2 done. He was so excited, telling us “…and right here I’ll have guitar going like…” I asked him (silly question) where do you get these ideas? He was like, “I just hear it in my head and put it down.”
I had never met him but knew he lived near where I grew up in CO, but I went to a concert in (believe it or not) Phoenix AZ in 1984 and was right up front wearing my Wolf Creek hat. At one point between songs he looked at me and said “Nice Hat” LOL. three years later I met him at Wolf Creek and later that year he invited us up for New Years. Funny thing is, I was always a fan of his music, and even learned to play the guitar so I could play his songs.
blah blah blah, Geez I can ramble… He would tour the local bars as “Frankie and the Aliens” LOL
Have you heard his album Nether Lands? It’s stilll one of my favorites.
not sure why it keeps double posting on me… Hmmmmm ??
Rude – I love hearing stories like that. It’s not rambling! It’s so nice to hear he was a down to earth guy with a real sense of place and home. I love his stuff!!
Netherlands is my favorite album!!!!!!!!! It just doesn’t get any better than that. Man, I miss him.
There was at least one place in Champaign-Urbana, IL, where Fogelberg used to occasionally just show up and play back in the mid ’70s. He was one of those people who remembered and appreciated where he came from. I had a girlfriend back then(it’s hard to believe she’s now nearing 50, and has children in college)who went to the University of Illinois. I was visiting for what was supposed to be a long weekend, but turned into around 8-9 days. We were in this bar, and she was telling me that Fogelberg showed up every once in a while to play unannounced. About 2 minutes after she finishes telling me about seeing him play there, and how great it was, in he walks, guitar in hand. He walked up to the stage, sat down, said, “Hey, everybody,” and started playing. This was right around the time that Souvenirs was released. Anyway, he seemed like a nice, down-to-earth guy. I was never a huge fan, but listening to his early stuff sure brings back some pleasant memories.