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| Joe Vitus |
 Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 3:06 am |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 14498
Location: Houston
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| It doesn't matter, Melody. This place, because of me, is a place you don't want to belong to. You said so yourself. |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 6:56 am |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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Joe Vitus wrote: It doesn't matter, Melody. This place, because of me, is a place you don't want to belong to. You said so yourself.
Joe, what are you smoking, my friend? I've seen you let much worse comments roll off your back many times in the past. You got really hot under the collar about Marc and Facebook, and I'm pretty sure that was what Melody was talking about. I love the drama that occasionally occurs here--in fact, it's partially what keeps me coming back--but this is drama queening. Stop already! |
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| marantzo |
| Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 7:53 am |
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| I agree about Woody's musical. I seem to remember it getting luke warm reviews and couldn't imagine why. I really enjoyed it. It seems to have disappeared from most everyone's memory. When I see it mentioned anywhere, I always think, "Oh yeah, I really liked that one." |
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| Marj |
| Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 1:20 pm |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 10497
Location: Manhattan
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Thanks Mel for re watching TLS, just as you said you would. She is one dimensional and cold but I remember days in my past, where I wanted nothing more than to be just like her. I guess it was in those says where I didn't feel assertive and powerless.
She certainly could use some humor couldn't she?
Gary, as I said, I thought Everybody Says I Love You was some kind of aboriginal for me. And that I was alone in loving it. But it really is so charming and full of real gems. And I loved that scene in Winston's and Edward Norton's dance number. Drew Barrymore was a delight and Goldie Hawn did a wonderful job on her last number, which I've obviously forgotten. But every song in it is so good. |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 1:33 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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Marj wrote: Thanks Mel for re watching TLS, just as you said you would. She is one dimensional and cold but I remember days in my past, where I wanted nothing more than to be just like her. I guess it was in those says where I didn't feel assertive and powerless.
She certainly could use some humor couldn't she?
Gary, as I said, I thought Everybody Says I Love You was some kind of aboriginal for me. And that I was alone in loving it. But it really is so charming and full of real gems. And I loved that scene in Winston's and Edward Norton's dance number. Drew Barrymore was a delight and Goldie Hawn did a wonderful job on her last number, which I've obviously forgotten. But every song in it is so good.
Edward Norton's dance number is for me the highlight among a host of highlights. He and the dancers work so well together that you feel they must have all had a ball. |
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| Marj |
| Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 1:36 pm |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 10497
Location: Manhattan
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| Wonderfully put, Billy. I don't know what I could add other than, WORD! |
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| Syd |
| Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 6:44 pm |
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Site Admin
Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 12921
Location: Norman, Oklahoma
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October Sky is the story of a boy, Homer Hickam (Jake Gyllenhaal), growing up in the dying mining town of Coalwood, West Virginia, who, in the wake of Sputnik, and inspired by his science teacher (Laura Dern), decides that he will build and launch his own rockets. This is much against the will of his father (Chris Cooper), who is an engineer for the local coal mine and wishes his son to follow in his footsteps. However, Homer and three of his classmates persist in building their rockets in hopes of winning the National Science Fair and getting scholarships so they have options rather than working the coal mine itself.
So we have part an inspiring teacher movie, partly How Green Was My Valley, partly a coming of age story and partly Mechanix Illustrated, and it all works. Sometimes it's funny, but it's also pretty moving, and in a way a valentine to the people Hickam grew up with. It's biographical and, going from the extras, pretty faithful to the facts. It's also a bit of tearjerker that did a lot to put Jake Gyllenhaal and Chris Cooper on the map.
We have several great movies about the manned space program, but not much on how we got there. Highly recommended. |
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I had a love and my love was true but I lost my love to the yabba dabba doo, --The Flintstone Lament |
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| Syd |
| Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 7:15 pm |
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Site Admin
Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 12921
Location: Norman, Oklahoma
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I could have sworn somebody reviewed October Sky here before me, but search doesn't turn it up. Maybe it was back at the New York Times.
One thing I like about it is that although John Hickam (Homer's father) is often pigheaded and narrow-minded because of his devotion with mining, he's also genuinely heroic, and this is established very quickly. Chris Cooper as usual is very good. I always look forward to seeing him in a movie. He's in one of the short stories in New York, I Love You, and will be in The Tempest.
The Tempest I have mixed feelings about since I don't care for the play. On the other hand, Helen Mirren is playing Prospera, which is certainly an innovation. Djimon Hounsou is Caliban, and that sounds very interesting. |
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I had a love and my love was true but I lost my love to the yabba dabba doo, --The Flintstone Lament |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 8:34 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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I've been raving about October Sky for years. It showed Jake Gyllenhaal to be a star in the making long before stardom genuinely happened. It also showed the softer side of Chris Cooper. Two really fine performances in an absolutely lovely film.
The title was the second for the movie. The original title was Rocket Boys, and October Sky is an anagram of it. Such a great trivia question. |
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| Marj |
| Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 9:35 pm |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 10497
Location: Manhattan
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I've never seen October Sky but I will add it to my queue.
Earlier I saw The Girlfriend Experience but missed Tim. I spoke to Betsy and she told me where to find him, so soon I'm going to check out the chapters and see his scene.
I don't have a lot to add to what's already been said about the film, other than I am very impressed with what Soderbergh can do with two weeks and very little money. A good director is usually pretty consistent. |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 11:39 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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| I'm pretty sure I posted a detailed explanation of where to find Tim. |
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| Marj |
| Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 11:46 pm |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 10497
Location: Manhattan
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| As I said earlier, I usually do a search. But I spoke with Betsy who told me where to find him. I'll look for your post later. |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Sun Nov 01, 2009 8:16 am |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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| The amazing thing about the October Sky/Rocket Boys anagrammed titles is that both titles are perfect for the movie. October Sky captures a little more exactly the sweet, lyrical tone of the film, however, and I suspect that's why they went with it rather than the slightly more antic Rocket Boys. |
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| Syd |
| Posted: Sun Nov 01, 2009 10:02 am |
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Site Admin
Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 12921
Location: Norman, Oklahoma
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billyweeds wrote: The amazing thing about the October Sky/Rocket Boys anagrammed titles is that both titles are perfect for the movie. October Sky captures a little more exactly the sweet, lyrical tone of the film, however, and I suspect that's why they went with it rather than the slightly more antic Rocket Boys.
One of the explanations I've heard is that Homer Hickam was worried that the title Rocket Boys wouldn't attract young women.
A couple of interesting things from the extras: Homer Hickam actually looks a bit more like the actor playing Quentin than like Jake Gyllenhall. (Although "Quentin" looks even more like the real Quentin.) And the teacher, Miss Riley, was actually a brunette and to my eyes was prettier than Laura Dern in the movie. No wonder her male students all had crushes on her. |
Last edited by Syd on Sun Nov 01, 2009 12:20 pm; edited 1 time in total
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I had a love and my love was true but I lost my love to the yabba dabba doo, --The Flintstone Lament |
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| lady wakasa |
| Posted: Sun Nov 01, 2009 11:47 am |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 5911
Location: Beyond the Blue Horizon
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Fly-by post:
I watched Toki o kakeru shôjo (The Girl Who Leapt Through Time , 2006; Japanese anime) last night. It's a sort-of sequel to a 1983 live-action film (which is either The Girl Who Leapt Through Time or The Girl Who Ran Through Time; the difference is important but this is fly-by so I'm not going to look it up), redone in 1994, which in its turn is an adaptation of a novel and earlier serialization of that story. This is a story that's become integrated into Japanese popular culture.
Most of the anime I watch is really geared towards adults; this is more late teen / young adult fare. The story itself is about an older high school student - clumsy as anything, late for everything, and affectionately called baka (idiot) by her two best friends - who finds out one day that she suddenly can have "do overs": if something bad just happened, like the pop quiz she just got 9% on, she can take a leap, go back in time and change events.
Cute enough; but the interesting part comes up when she starts realizing the consequences of all those changes - and what's behind her new-found powers. It becomes a bit of a bildungsroman (okay, I like using that word), a cautionary tale about getting what you want, and something else that I can't tell you without spoiling things.
This won a number of awards when it came out in 2006, and it seems that the story itself evokes a certain level of fondness in Japan. Both the original novel and a graphic novel providing a pre-story to the anime are available in English, but I'd better work on some other the other piles of books waiting for me first before investing in that...
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