8/10/04

First of all...this is my last blog for the next week or so, as I'm going on (cue the Go Go's music....) "Vacation" (..."all I ever wanted...vacation, time to get away...").  Anyway, I'll be back on Tuesday the 17th after my trip to the nation's capital and I'm sure I'll have tons of details, not only of the sights of D.C., but lots of stories about Kellie and the drama I'm sure we'll endure.  Going to hook up with my old friend the Denn-meister over the weekend for lunch.  Other than that, not much going on other than I've been sicker than a dog---ya, I know...right before fucking vacation.  I got a chance to see two new movies, one that was so-so and one that I would recommend to anyone who's a true movie fan.

The first one is Barbershop 2, which is the sequel to one of the surprise hits of last year.  Much like the first one, the best part of this one is listening to Cedric the Entertainer just rip the hell out of everyone.  Black, white,...don't make no difference.  He's an equal opportunity offender.  A black Don Rickles if you will.
The 1st one is the better movie, but this one has some funny moments, especially when dealing with the local politician who sounds an awful lot like a certain "rainbow coalition" leader.  ** 1/2

By the way, speaking of movies....I saw an utterly fantastic movie today.  Acting tour de force.  Its a movie called "Moonlight Mile" and it stars Dustin Hoffman, Susan Sarandon & Jake Gyllendahl.  Really great movie and damn, is the soundtrack ever awesome!!  I was thinking of you because the title is taken from a Stones song, and the soundtrack has stuff from Dylan, Bowie, Van Morrison, Jefferson Airplane & Robert Plant.  I'm actually thinking of going out and purchasing it--it was that good.  Lots of stuff I wasn't really familar with, but I just sat there watching it going..."man, what a great fucking song!"  Are you familar with the title song by the Stones?  Anyway, the movie is set in 1973, and Gyllendahl plays the fiancee of a young girl who's been killed.  Her parents are Hoffman & Sarandon and while they're grieving the loss of their daughter, they invite her fiancee to come stay with them for the funeral and other various matters that happen after a death.  Pretty soon, Hoffman is trying to get Gyllendahl to become his business partner and the couple is more or less trying to adopt the poor kid, who's busy coping with the loss himself, and the secret that he hasn't been able to share with his fiancee's parents....that he and the dead girl had broken off their engagement 3 days before her death.  Plus, in the meantime, he's fallen for a local girl (not sure who the actress is--but she's fantastic) who's still trying to get over the death of her boyfriend, who's MIA in Vietnam for a couple of years.  Its a real "actors" movie.  I mean, all of them have scenes that just rip at your heart as they try and cope with the loss.  That being said, its not a tearjerker, because the end of the movie is very upbeat and positive, as they each (I'm not giving anything away here) try and continue with their lives.  This is the best role Hoffman has had in like forever, and the best thing that Sarandon has done since Dead Man Walking.  I'm not crazy about her politics, but man--she is one hell of an actress, I'll give her that.  Gyllendahl is a real up and comer...as a matter of fact, watching the movie I was struck by how much the character was like a young Benjamin Braddock from the Graduate.  That's not a bad comparsion, huh?  **** 1/2 stars.   Later, Jeff   PS...so as not to start going into the top 5 of my movies and then leave you hanging, I'll complete my list when I get back......so as of now, the top 10 I started looks something like this.... 10) The Shawshank Redemption
  9) Rear Window
  8) The Outlaw Josey Wales
  7) The Godfather 1 & 2
  6) The Lord of the Rings Trilogy   that leaves us with just the top 5....and just to be a complete asshole, I'm gonna leave ya hanging.....why?  Because I can!!  Its my damn journal!!! Later, Jeff