Ding! Ding!

Wall-E is going to be a very, very different kind of movie.

I made very a happy noises (see above) when I read this (from this quotation of Josh Hurst's thoughts on Jeff Overstreet's blog):

But even more than a great work of sci-fi, this is a great work of cinema. WALL•E is Pixar’s boldest, bravest film yet, opening with half an hour in which no dialogue occurs. Much of the story is told, then, only through images, and in this regard, it’s the most sophisticated and subtle film Pixar has yet made. There are moments of inspired visual humor, and of poignant visual metaphors. There are small gestures and little moments that say more than a script ever could. It’s so gloriously evocative, surely it deserves to be called poetry.

Wednesday, June 25 2008

Today I am jumping with my left foot.

I am reading books this summer.

My Dad Is a Really Good Writer

My Dad (who has a blog!) is a really good writer, and he has (gasp!) just recently posted two (two!) new posts on his blog; Children of the Burning Heart.

Click here to read his thoughts on Father's Day in: Wooly Mammoth on the Grill

And here to read his reflections on baseball: Red Stitching

A Pin from VBS

This is still true, by the way. It was true in the third grade, and it's still true now.

Quote

My friend and fellow blogger, Eucharisto, has a great quote up on his blog from one of my favorite artists.

Sufjan Stevens' thoughts on "Being born again."

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Oh, and while we're on the subject, Eucharisto (who is a FANTASTIC musician) also has some great original music online. You can listen to it here. (And here.)

And if you want to see some of his music in action in some of my movies (well, just one of my movies, really). Click here.

Garfield Minus Garfield

Dublin native, Dan Walsh has played with the comic strip "Garfield" by removing it's main character, leaving Jon (even more) alone. The results are... well, see for yourself:

Aren't these hilarious? Find more strips at:

http://garfieldminusgarfield.net/

Washington Post Article

In gardens they perish.

She seemed to dislike the disequilibrium of counterpoising a roomful of light against a worldful of darkness.

Lost

"Homecoming" was a good episode.

It made me smile twice. I don't remember the first time, but the second time was when they were setting up sentries around the camp. People guarding camps of plane crash victims from mysterious and bad island people is cool.

Also the backstory totally related with the main story, which was great. I hate it when it seems like the backstory is thrown in just randomly. And it was all revealed at just the right times, which is good. Learning where a little of where Charlie's desire to protect Claire comes from was good and very effective. I think I even said (at least thought) "poor Charley" at the end. According to my screenwriting teacher the purpose of screenwriting is to elicit an emotional response from the reader/veiwer. I don't know whether or not I agree with that (this would be a good discussion sometime), but at any rate the show got one from me (I identify with Charley and his desire to have someone to look after), and that means something at least. So, good job Lost screenwriters. I just wish I felt like the characters were really interacting and not just occasionally conversing as a (crazy, insane, mixed up, mysterious, exciting) plot drags them forward. I wish I felt like the show was living up to it potential in all areas and not just those plot and individual characters (which they're doing a great job with; I just want to see some more actual interaction going on).

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Oh, one of the other times that made me smile with excitement was when they were asking for others to help and it happened that they asked Sawyer, and then Kate joined in also. Then they had all their strongest characters together (with guns!) trying to trap Ethan. I thought "finally! They're starting to really use the characters they've been developing!" Of course, it didn't turn out to be that strong of an interaction (the scene turned out differently, good, but differently), but it was a nice promise, a good moment, anyway.

I should mention too another thing about the guns. I was excited too about the guns being introduced because it could mean that the show, by giving us a microcosm of a society to look at, can examine, explore and play with societal structures and issues. The one at the moment being, "What happens when sophisticated weapons are introduced into a society?" Lost touches on this sometimes. I hope they do it more.

Anyway, thank you writers. I'm going to move on to episode 16 now.

I really liked Sawyer's backstory episode, by the way. I think it was my favorite so far.

Oh, and I really like, um the bald guy who throws knives at things. John, that's right, John, um.. Locke! Of course, a great name. Anyway, he's a great character, he's a leader on the island, but you're constantly guessing what he's up to and what's going on inside him. Also I like what they're dong with Boone's character. He's developing! Which is good, and is more than I can say for, say... certain doctors on the island (and their crushes).

Installment Number Thirty One...

"Art does not reproduce what we see; rather, it makes us see."

-Paul Klee (found via Jeffrey Overstreet)