Not So Lazy Days of Summer

Hey Everyone, This past weekend was a busy one for Thomas and me. My brother came into town for a visit. I'd previously mentioned that he's moving to Denver. He's decided against this, so he came for a brief stay instead. After over a year of being married, Thomas and I have developed a better process for having guests stay over. I guess practice makes perfect, so the entire stay went smoothly and was enjoyable. Friday night we went down to Pearl Street for the Fall Festival. It was awesome! There was a great band and all sorts of booths. They also had this trapeze thing that you could do for ten minutes. I was feeling a touch under the weather and had just eaten dinner so I avoided it. But at the next Fall Fest, I will definitely be flying thru the air with the greatest of ease (and hopefully not crashing to the ground). Saturday we hit Flatirons to do some shopping. They've remodeled The Gap and I highly recommend it now. When you go in the dressing room you get a buzzer and they write your name on the door. Instant, personal service!

Saturday night we went to a party at Eddie and Larissa's. It was a combination housewarming/late birthday party (Eddie's) and it was wonderful. Their new house is beautiful - front and back yard, hardwood floors, great fixtures, lighting and cabinets and countertops, and lots of space. At the party, I got to see some people I haven't seen in awhile - Rich and Melissa, Tim, and Tom. And I got to meet some new people like Eddie's brother, his best man and their neighbors (I was quite jealous of their neighbors as ours tend to be rowdy college kids). I honestly felt like I was on a TV show. That's how great this group was. Eddie grilled the most delicious burgers and Larissa made cous cous and the best potatoes ever (Thomas inquired about the recipe - I see it in my future). However, I most enjoyed her sangria and moist chocolate cake with coffee ice cream. All in all it was a lovely evening. We stayed outside most of the time because the weather was just that good. Eddie and Larissa made it all look so easy. It kind of inspired me to try having more than two people over at one time.

On Sunday Thomas decided the time had come to put up our Sunsetter. A Sunsetter is an awning. We needed it for our upper deck, a great space that has gone unused because the horrid sun beats down on you and burns you within five minutes. So if this space was ever to be used, the awning was a necessity. Unfortunately it came in three hugely heavy and ridiculously long boxes. Luckily Creede was there or we would never have got them upstairs. It was definitely a three man job. Once we got everything upstairs we opened the boxes and there were literally hundreds of parts. I almost wept. I knew this project would not only take the entire day, but would likely end in disaster. Fortunately, Thomas read the instructions and had a visionary's sense of how things should be done, so though it did take all day we actually got the thing up. Now that it's up, I adore it. I have made much use of it in the past three days because the deck plays host to one of my favorite things - my hammock. Now I can lie and read in the hammock whenever I like and not have to worry about the sun. With my skin, this is a BIG deal. I am over the moon with happiness about this turn of events.

On Sunday night Thomas, Creede and I met Tim at Dave & Busters in Westminster. Creede and Thomas played lots of games while Tim and I caught up. D&B has this new deal now where you get your meal and for a little extra get a $10 game card as well. This proved to be very popular with us and we actually didn't even use up all our cards. I played a solitary mean game of Ms. Pac man - got past level 3, made 67,000+ points, and wore out my right hand in the process. Definitely the best bang for your buck. After that, the boys went to see The Exorcism of Emily Rose (I am forever grateful to Tim for accompanying Thomas to these horror movies. The nightmares are just too much for me), and I went to see Just Like Heaven with Reese Witherspoon and Mark Ruffalo. It was your typical romantic comedy. Maybe a little better than average, but the plot was especially predictable. Luckily the two leads are charismatic and talented, tho it's not like they had chemistry in spades. I'm still glad I saw it rather than Exorcism , even though Thomas, Creede and Tim really enjoyed it (read what Creede had to say here).

So that was my weekend. Creede left for Creede Wednesday, but it's going to be a beautiful weekend. I see a lot of hammock time (and finally Serenity!!!) in my future.

-sunday

2005 Emmys - The Good, The Bad and the Downright Scary

Hey everyone! Now that I went through all the winners and the losers (there was a little bit of happiness for me), on to the important stuff. Who made out and who made fools of themselves! Here are some observations:

• Ellen Degeneres: I really like Ellen and think she did a good job. Her opening joke about how she always hosts the show after national tragedies (9/11 and now Hurricane Katrina) and that her next job would be emceeing North Korea's People's Choice Awards really made me laugh. She's just a little bit wacky, kind hearted, and she doesn't seem to take show business too seriously.

• The Emmy Timekeeper: He kept appearing in a recurring bit, and though that got a bit old, I'm very grateful to him for keeping the show moving. It ended on time! When was the last time the Oscars did that?

• The Emmy Director: When Lost won for Best Drama, the camera stayed focus on presenter, Hugh Jackmane. This was very annoying. Lost won in its first season - you know these people went nuts, and we didn't get to see their reaction.

• The kid from Everybody Hates Chris: He came out with another kid who lost everything in Hurricane Katrina. Both were so cute and self possessed. I hope it forced some of the Hollywood bigwigs to open their pockets.

• David Letterman's Johnny Carson tribute: The classiest moment of the night. Letterman said how back in the day Carson was the idol of all the comics. Later John Stewart said that's how today's comics feel about Letterman. I wonder what Jay Leno is thinking right now?

• I admit that I didn't watch the other tribute. I recorded the whole show and got thru it in 1 hr and 15 minutes thanks to moves like this.

• John Stewart's tape of his reaction to Hurricane Katrina. And his acceptance speech for winning best tv talk show.
  

• Are all directors of American tv shows British? It seems that all the winners were. Not sure how to account for this.

• S. Epatha Merkerson's win for Best Actress in a TV Miniseries: I loved her speech. She said she dropped what she'd written down the front of her dress and was quite discombobulated and emotional. I've only see her as the dry Law and Order lady, so it was funny to see what a screwball she was in real life. She ties with Felicity Huffman for Best Speech given by a Girl.

• Grey's Anatomy star Ellen Pompeo looked great. Like a young Diane Lane, but she really needs to work on her walk.

• Best Dress Overall and Best Dressed in their 40s: Marcia Cross from Desperate Housewives. Even though she looks like a robot, she was gorgeously attired in a brilliant green gown that was timeless. Could have been worn 100 years ago and will still look fab 100 years from now.

• Best Dressed in their 20s: Mischa Barton from The OC. She looked absolutely lovely.

• Best Dressed in their 30s: Halle Berry. If you look like Halle, almost anything looks good on you, but she looked especially great in a brilliant blue floaty strapless number cut up to here.

• Most Surprisingly Popular Color: OSU fans can rejoice because orange was a big hit at the Emmys this year. Mariska Hargitay and Eva Longoria pulled it off beautifully, but Portia d' Rossi kind of scared me.

• Scariest: Terri Hatcher from Desperate Housewives. Hatcher used to be a beautiful woman but now she's the posterchild for od'ing on anorexia and plastic surgery. Her face scares me. And her dress didn't do that much for me either. I think all the other housewives trumped her.

• Most Grown Up: Allison Hannigan, aka Willow from Buffy. She's always kind of freaked me out me in the past, but she looked great at the Emmys.
  

• Most Bloated: Jennifer Garner. Her face looked really weird and swollen. I guess not everyone looks great pregnant. And why didn't Ben Affleck walk the red carpet with her?

• Most Hated: Star Jones. At times like the preshow, it makes me realize how much I miss Joan and Melissa. Once again tho, Kathy Griffin saved it from being too painful by slamming all the celebs. BTW, I just heard she filed for divorce after 4 yrs AND Chad Michael Murray and Sofia Bush (both teen idols of One Tree Hill) did the same after 4 months.

Ok, that's it for my snarky comments. Hopefully, I'll be more prompt in disecting the next awards show. But even more hopefully maybe next yr, the voters will give some love to The Wire, Gilmore Girls, and Veronica Mars.

-sunday

2005 Emmys Recap

Hey everyone! The bad thing about having a blog is that it's supposed to be about what's happening RIGHT NOW. I've read blogs that people post on five seconds after something happens. Unfortunately, I don't have that kind of discipline, so this entry is going to be quite pase. But I did go to all the trouble to watch the 2005 Emmys and even take a few notes, so typing them up seems the thing to do.

First off, the nominations. Bad, bad, bad. The number one show in all the land was ignored, except for one measly writing episode. That show would be The Wire. It's on dvd, so rent it and give it a try. Two pieces of advice: you must be focused when watching - you can't be playing with the dog or cooking dinner or reading a magazine - it requires (and rewards) 100%
of your attention. Also, you must watch with subtitles on. Otherwise you can't understand anything. This is well worth it as the dialogue is creative and brilliant and hilarious. A series of blog entries on The Wire is needed, but this is not the time. Basically, a tv critic noted that for both Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor, the Emmy voters could have closed their eyes and thrown a dart at the entire Wire cast and the resulting target would have been worthy of the award. Instead, they went with mainstream choices - some good, some horrible.

The night started off with two disappointments: wins for Supporting Actors in a Comedy - Doris Roberts and Brad Garret for Everybody Loves Raymond. I've tried to watch this show and have never been able to last through one episode. It's just not for me. It was somewhat redeemed by Garret's speech - he is a very funny guy. But Roberts.......arrgh! Who says agism exists in Hollywood. If so, there's no way they would keep rewarding this woman. Who was robbed? Jeremy Piven of Entourage. I love that show primarily for him, and probably Jessica Walters of Arrested Development. I loved Season 1, but admit I didn't have time to watch Season 2. Though it is on my netflix queue.

Next up were the Supporting Actors in a Drama. Blythe Danner won for Huff (does anyone watch this show??), and William Shatner won for Boston Legal. Of those nominated, I would have gone for Sandra Oh of Grey's Anatomy, but my fav supporting actresses weren't even nominated (that'd be Emily from Gilmore Girls or any of the girls from Lost). I'm a fan of Boston Legal and Shatner's character is one of my dad's favs, but again, any guy from The Wire or from it's lessor Deadwood, would have been more deserving. Of those actually nominated, my vote would have gone for Locke on Lost. He is riveting.

Writing: Winners were Arrested Development for comedy (I can agree with this) and House for drama. Again The Wire should have won. And if it didn't win, Deadwood should have, but I actually love House, so I was happy. I also liked the winner's speech. He basically thanked his family for making him well-adjusted enough to be happy about the win, and thanked everyone else - you know who you are - for making his life miserable enough to write the character of House.

Best Actors, Comedy: Tony Schaloub won for Monk. I don't watch this, but his speech was funny. I would have given it to Zach Braff for Scrubs. Felicity Huffman won for Desperate Housewives. Sorry, but Lorelai Gilmore was so robbed (and she wasn't even nominated). Oddly enough, I'm not the hugest fan of Housewives. I watched it periodically last season, and haven't decided yet if I'll watch this season. I missed the premiere. I do believe Huffman is the best actress of the lot, and her speech was v sweet, so if any of them had to win, I'm glad it was her.

Best Actors, Drama: James Spader won for Boston Legal. Of those nominated, Ian McShane of Deadwood, especially was robbed. In the two seasons - season 1, especially - he's give a tour d'force performance as Al Swearengen. But Hugh Laurie of House was easily the second choice for this award. His biting sarcasm and pained wit make House a must watch show. This one angered me the most of the night. Patricia Arquette won for Medium. I've really liked her ever since True Romance, so I can't be too unhappy with this win but the rightful winner should have been Lorelai Gilmore or if not her, Veronica Mars. But of those nominated, I'm glad it was Arquette.

The Life and Death of Peter Sellers won three awards for Best Miniseries, directing, writing and acting, so I think I'll have to see it.

Best Comedy: The winner was Everybody Loves Raymond. I really couldn't believe it. I would have anything above this - probably Scrubs, then Arrested Development specifically, but why this show??? Thank God it's finally over.

Best Drama: Lost! Since The Wire wasn't nominated, this was my pick. I think they accomplished more than Deadwood this year, and Deadwood's the only nominee that could have come close to me. Lost is sooooooooo good and the first 5 minutes of last Wednesday's season premier (they're repeating tonite at 7 if you missed it) were enough to confirm my opinion that Lost is just amazing. I'm more anxious to know what happens on this show than any other show right now. You HAVE to watch it.

So the awards at least ended on a good note.

Next time: Best and worst moments and fashion.

-sunday

Getting Ryd of Cyd

Hey everyone! This past weekend several friends and I gathered to bid farewell to Cyd. She's leaving us to live the life of the expat with Niels in London, so we had another go at the Get Ryd of Cyd party. Given her madcap lifestyle, this has become practically an annual event. Luckily she was able to take a couple of months off between NYC and London so we got lots of good hangout time. This included the weekend before last when she came up to Boulder. We took the "How Well Do You Know Sex and the City" quiz from the Sex and the City book she got me. Watch parties of this girliest of shows were a must for us during our single days in the city of Denver. Anyway, I consider myself quite the tv maven, but she actually beat me 25 to 22. Something tells me a prior peak at the answers is the only way this could have happened. She's across the pond by now, so I don't have to worry about her pummeling me for such slander.

After that we watched this documentary I'd read about on Page 6 that's being made into a play called Grey Gardens. It was made in the 1970s about Edith Beale and her daughter Edie. They live together in this huge mansion in the Hamptons and they're cousins of none other than Jackie O. The documentarians were originally making a film about Jackie, interviewing her family, friends and whatnot. But then they met the 2 Ediths and found their real story. Sure Jack Kennedy had Marilyn, the mob, painkillers, and all sorts of diseases in his closet, but none of that could compare to the two cousins Jackie surely thought she'd left behind. As the film progressed, we gradually realized that tho they lived in this fabulously huge house, the two were spending all their time in one yellow room....sleeping, entertaining their one stoner guest, eating, and even cooking, all the while surrounded by cats. I cannot describe how dirty the place was. Their beds were so full of junk, I don't know how they even sat on them much less slept on them. The filmmakers took some shots of the rest of the house and you could see how it was basically rotting and no joke - infested by racoons. They were attracted by the combination of wonderbread and catfood that Edie left for the cats in the attic.

Edie's wardrobe was a sight to behold. We never actually saw her scalp because it was constantly covered by a scarf or more frequently, a sweater that she tied around her head with the two sleeves knotted in the back. The other components of this outfit were typically a 50s style swimsuit (Edie herself is 56), pantyhose and white pumps. Her creativity and delusions of grandeur were astounding. We got really excited in one scene where the two got all dolled up in formalwear thinking they were actually going somewhere. That somewhere was DOWNSTAIRS. It was Edith's birthday - she turned 79 - and they had two normal-looking guests over to celebrate. This led to some drama as the kitchen chairs were so dirty the guests had to sit on newspaper. Edith was also very upset that they were toasting from paper cups rather than the gold trimmed goblets she had in mind. Throughout the film, the two spent most of the time singing, dancing, bickering and reliving the past, particularly Edie's obsession with a 32 year old man who proposed to her. Edith remains bitter to this day that Edie did not wed a Getty. Provided you have the right company, an absurdist attitude, a large quantity of alcoholic beverages, and you're a girl (Thomas left after about 20 minutes to smoke a cigar on our deck - I think the level of female insanity was a bit too much for him) Grey Gardens is not to be missed.

Grey Gardens did get us in such a good mood that the three of us spent the next several hours dancing to The Raveonettes, Johnny Cash and Cross Canadian Ragweed. I'm not sure what inspired this dance marathon, but I wouldn't have missed it. Shockingly the only resulting damages were a broken glass and several bruises. And some massive sleep deprivation the next day when I had to wake up a short 3 hours later to take Cyd to the airport at 6 a.m.

Cyd returned a few days later to have her actual going away party. In attendance were Cyd, Thomas and I, Joe, Kim, Rhonda, Joanne, Jon, Zora, and their adorable baby Addie. We met at McCormicks to take advantage of their happy hour and somehow the ten of us squeezed around a table for four. We're all smaller than we look, I guess. It was great catching up with everyone and telling embarassing stories. Unfortunately there was no voice recorder, but I did dig out my ancient polaroid and took some snapshots which I've posted on yahoo (as you'll see, the camera only really wanted to capture Joe, so that must make him the opposite of a vampire). Who needs fancy digital cameras when a clunky 10 year old polaroid takes such unconventional shots! Click this link to view.

So, bon voyage Cyd and cheers, mate. We already miss you!

-sunday

Boulder Bumpersticker of the Day (courtesy of Eddie and Larissa): Screw Tibet, Free Scotland

It's Not Easy Being Green

Hey everyone! Ever since I heard the book Wicked was being made into a broadway musical, I've been dying to see it. My wish was finally granted when the touring production came to Denver and Thomas, Jen, Dave and I went this past Saturday night. I read the book about ten years ago when I was living in Arkansas and I was entranced. Everyone knows the story of the Wizard of Oz and you pretty much accept it as fact that the Witch is evil, 'nuf said. Wicked just blew my mind because it tells the story from her perspective - how did she get to the point in life where she was so desperate for those ruby slippers that she ended up melting for them. In his book, Wicked, Gregory Maguire tells the story of a young girl named Elfaba (derived from L. Frank Baum's initials) who thanks to her green skin is a born outsider. She also happens to be a devoted animal rights activist hence the flying monkeys that surround her. She meets Glinda (aka the Good Witch) in college and their relationship evolves throughout the story. Maguire also spends a good bit of time explaining the politics of Oz, particularly the status of the animals. They start out as speaking, sentient beings and are then forced to become caged, unintelligible beasts. You also get to find out how the Tinman and the Scarecrow came to fruition and all sorts of other good stuff. Basically, the first 3/4 of the book rock, but as Larissa reminded me it is a bit slowgoing at the end. I still heartily recommend it.

Anyway, the musical. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I'm a big fan of spectacle in general and the sets and costumes were enough to please me on their own. Tons of emerald green sets and dresses (and skin). Both were extremely creative. Elfaba was played by Stephanie J. Block and Glinda by Kendra Kassebaum. Also starring were Carol Kane (remember her from Taxi and Scrooged) and the guy who played the Bundy's next door neighbor, Steve on Married with Children. Glinda totally stole the show for me. She was so funny and lively that you couldn't take your eyes off her, no matter who was on the stage. I thought Elfaba's voice was a little better, but Glinda provided almost every laugh during the show with all of her little quirks, movements and voice inflections. Wicked's worth seeing just to see her in action. Given how complicated the story is, I thought they did a pretty good job explaining it, how Elfaba turned wicked, and the relationship between Glinda and her. The audience was extremely enthusiastic, providing a standing O and raving about the production. And I was just as enthusiastic up thru intermission. However, once it was over, as Thomas said, the music kind of sucked. And for a musical that's a pretty big deal. You don't leave the theatre singing any particular song. There's no catchy "We're Off to See the Wizard" or anything like that. As Thomas also noted, the music and lyrics were very Celine Diony. Not sure if that's just the current fad in musicals or what. Two of the musicals I've seen in the past ten years where I really loved the music were Lion King and Rent (I actually had to see it twice, I loved it so much and seriously considered buying the cd). Not so with Wicked. Some of the songs were good in the moment and the ones that had all the cast up there dancing I enjoyed, again for the spectacle. My other complaint is there was no grand finale, which we've all come to expect from musicals. That big number that brings in all the cast and ratchets up the emotion so you want to jump to your feet. That was missing. They did have a good finale right before intermission, but strangely enough it was missing from the actual end of the play. It reminded me of the Creede fireworks this year. And I get that this isn't Dorothy's story, but I would have appreciated a glimpse of her and Toto. So, if you're a fan of musicals and/or a fan of the book, I do definitely recommend Wicked, the musical, but go in there with some realistic expectations. If you haven't read the book but enjoy musicals, I can highly recommend it whether you're a fan of the fantasy genre or not.

-sunday

The Bloggerazzi Strikes Again!

Andy Garcia

Hey everyone! OK, I promise. This is the last Telluride post, but I had to have one more just to show this pic of Andy Garcia. He may be older, but he is still very good looking and extremely well dressed. He always looked just right. Unfortunately for me and my paparizzi-like tendencies, general picture-taking and harrassment of the actors is discouraged. I took this shot the night Andy played with his band and introduced The Lost City, so I didn't feel too bad about it.

But..........even though this pic of him and that of the panel are the only snapshots I took, I had close encounters with lots of other stars. Here's the summary:

• Liev Schreiber - I stood RIGHT behind him in the world's longest line for coffee. It was just before his panel, so he was very nervous. He is surprisingly tall for an actor I'm talking 6'4" or 6'5"
  
• Phillip Seymour Hoffman - Standing in line for President's Last Bang
• Andy Garcia, Enrique Murciano, and Jsu Garcia hanging out in the park and on the street smoking cigars just like they did in The Lost City
  
• Ken Burns - several places. I've seen him every time I go to Telluride. He's a fixture.
• Leonard Maltin, the film critic - We passed him on the street
• Helena Bonham Carter - Thomas held the door open for her at the barbeque place. He said she smiled at him but didn't say thank you. We still like her tho.

Those are the highlights. The rest I just saw at the panel or introducing their films. But I enjoyed it all nonetheless. And that is officially the end of my Telluride story (for this year).

-sunday

Telluride's Dream Panel

Hey everyone, Above you can see a picture I took of the panel Thomas and I attended in Telluride. I call it the dream panel as it was comprised of William H. Macy, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Question Lady, Liev Schreiber, Helena Bonham Carter, and Aaron Eckhart. I feared it would be very technical and actory, but my fears were for naught. The actors were all extremely interesting and most of them were funny as well. Especially Macy, who before this was never really a favorite of mine. As several people mentioned he looks little too like a puppet. Most of the questions were geared around how actors prepare and get into character, what makes for a good experience, and how you transition from acting to directing, as Schreiber did with Everything is Illuminated.

As I said, Macy was hilarious - he was pretty cynical about the whole process, took a real workman like approach to acting - it's just a job, don't take it so seriously, etc. In contract to this was Eckhart who looked like he wanted to attack Macy for making these slanderous statements. He was very passionate about acting - it was all about the art and method for him. I can forgive this, since he is so very very handsome. Bonham was suprisingly dressed in jeans with a touch of goth makeup (guess that explains her attraction to Tim Burton), self-deprecating, nervous and kind of kooky , Hoffman was also funny and obviously very intelligent but quite neurotic. And Schreiber was quick on his feet (when Question Lady realized she forgot to introduce him, he responded with "I need no introduction"), and he told several humorous anectodes. Schreiber won my heart when he said his favorite movie experience was with The Daytrippers, one of my favorite movies. It was directed by his best friend, Greg Mottola who also inspired hs performance as Carl. If you've seen Daytrippers, then you know this must mean Mottola is a pretty weird guy. If you haven't seen it, add it to Netflix now! It is hilarious and also stars indie queen Parker Posey and Hope Davis.

My obligation to my blog led me to capture several quotes from the panel:

"Everything you need is in the script. If it's not in the script, get out!" W.H. Macy
"If you're on a set and you feel like you have to be pathologically sweet, I go down in flames." P.S. Hoffman
Macy to Carter: "I've got a belt that's older than you."
Macy about directors: "You can make art on your own time."
Eckhart: "Creativity is like a bird in the hand. If you scare it away you screw your own movie."
Schreiber about acting in Mixed Nuts with Steve Martin and Madeline Kahn (on whom he had a "wicked crush"): "I stayed on set even after my scenes were done. I wanted to see if any of them would want to talk to me after our scene".
Scheiber on directing his first movie: "I'm an actor, at least I can act like a director."
Macy: "Making a movie is like going to war. The director is the general. God help you if you have one that wants to collaborate."
Macy: "They shoot the film out of order. It's such a a pain in the ass."

There were lots of other things said, but my shorthand skills are not what they need to be.

-sunday

Telluride Film Fest Part 2

Hey Everyone, I'm back with the rest of the movies I saw in Telluride. On Sunday afternoon after Brokeback Mountain, Thomas and I tried to get into Paradise Now, a movie about a couple of Palestinian suicide bombers. It was supposed to be unbiased, but I have my doubts given the director. However, it had huge buzz at Telluride so we wanted to give it a shot. Unfortunately, the show that we wanted to get into was followed by a Q&A with the director, so only those lucky hundreds with passes got into that film. So we zipped down the mountain to see President's Last Bang, another movie that we'd heard good things about.

• President's Last Bang - This is a new movie from South Korea about the assassination of the South Korean president in 1979. It was interesting in the sense that I never even knew their president was assassinated. The guy introducing the film said it affected them like Kennedy's assassination affected Americans. After watching the movie, I'm not sure why. The film portrayed EVERYONE in it as a dim bulb - from the president to his hilarious Cartman-like chief bodyguard, to the Director of the KCIA (their version of the CIA, I think) who plotted the assassination and his crew of numbskulls. We expected Bang to be a story about a complex plan put into action. Instead, it seemed like spur of the moment spite prompted the bumping off of the prez. And though the slaying itself was pretty easy, the nitwit KCIA director didn't have an exit strategy. Overall, this movie was disappointing. It had some funny parts, but there wasn't much suspense or action after all.

Monday
Monday as we now know is the MOST important day of the Telluride Film Festival - especially if you don't have a pass. It seemed like at least half of the pass holders left, and the schedule was chock full of TBAs, so they filled it with all the films getting the best buzz. I saw a record
FOUR movies on Monday and they were all awesome.

• Capote - A few years ago I read a biography of Truman Capote by George Plimpton (Plimpton has a fabulous way of writing bios - I read my first of his in high school of Edie Sedgwick and it had a huge impact on me. Edie led a very interesting life, was Andy Warhol's original superstar, Kyra Sedgwick's cousin, descendant of a Mayflower passenger, the inspiration for Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone" and New Bohemian's "Little Miss S", a member of the 27 club, and the subject of an upcoming movie starring Sienna Miller. If you like bios, you'll love this book (even if it's not about your typical historical figure). Anyway, as with Edie, Plimpton interviewed people who knew Capote throughout his life and reprinted their stories verbatim chronologically. So you feel like you're getting the inside scoop and the truth). From reading this book, I found Capote to be brilliant, creative, hilarious and monstrously self-indulgent. His own feelings always trumped those surronding him, regardless of the degree of actual suffering involved. The movie Capote stars the wonderful Phillip Seymour Hoffman and it focuses on the time Capote spent researching and writing In Cold Blood, the true story of the murders of a Kansas family by Perry Smith and Richard Hickock. After reading about the story in the Times, Capote travels to Kansas with his lifelong friend Harper Lee (Capote was the inspiration for Dill in Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird) to interview all the players. Catherine Keener does a great job playing against type as Nell Harper Lee and her self deprecating manner is starkly at odds with that of Capote's. The movie also stars the fabulous Chris Cooper as the FBI agent in charge of the case who goes from entertaining Capote in his home to threatening him for endangering the case. Capote bribes his way into the prison holding the two killers and decides the story he wanted lies with Smith. He continually visits Smith trying to get the story of the murders out of him and trying to convince Smith that he's on his side and will somehow get him acquitted. Capote proves to know no side but his own. Capote is a fascinating movie. My attention did not stray from it for a moment. The similarities between Capote and Smith are captured in Capote's remark to Lee, "It's like we grew up in the same house, but he went through the back door while I went through the front."

• Walk the Line - This is the film we all wanted to see. We also all knew it would be coming to nearby theaters eventually, but we had to see it anyway. Walk the Line is the story of Johnny Cash. I'll admit that prior to this movie I wasn't a huge Cash fan. I don't own any of his cds, but I like his more popular songs like "Ring of Fire". And I didn't know anything about his second wife June Carter Cash, so I was pretty much a blank slate going in. Joaquin Phoenix gave an electrifying performance as Cash. You could not take your eyes off him, always waiting to see what he'd do next. He's my current pick for Best Actor. Reese Witherspoon gives her best performance to date as well as June Carter, she too needs a nom at the very least. Cash spends most of the movie touring, hooked on drugs and pursuing Carter. There are lots of songs performed in the movie and all of them are awesome - I just cannot believe that the two leads sang their own songs. Towards the end, Phoenix sounds just like Cash. You also get a good feel for what tours were like in the 50s and 60s. All of these guys would travel together - Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis Presley, Cash and others. Both my parents tell stories of getting to hear acts like these all playing at one concert. They definitely had it good back then. Walk the Line is really a love story though. Cash's persistent pursuit of Carter over ten years!!! is incredibly romantic and they didn't make it easy for each other. But then you read about their 35 year marriage and that they died within six months of each other and you've just got to have a lump in your throat. That's what it's all about. I left the movie a huge fan of Cash, Carter, Phoenix and Witherspoon. This is easily the best movie (so far) of 2005. Unfortunately it's not getting released until Nov 18. So when you see it, you really will have a happy Thanksgiving.

• Conversations with Other Women - I lucked out and this one was right after Walk the Line and in the same theater , so I was able to sneak in. My fav thing! Unfortunately the rest of our crew had had it, so I went solo. But going to movies solo is another of my fav things, especially when they're this good. By the time this movie was over, I was in total love with the Film Fest - 3 wonderful movies in a row! Conversations stars Aaron Eckhart and Helena Bonham Carter as two people who meet at a wedding. As the movie progresses, a back-story is revealed. It's too good for me to give away, so I'm not going to say too much. The script is wonderful story of What Might Have Been (and as Anj once told me at the GM Tech Center, "The saddest stories on paper and pen are those of what might have been" - see, I can remember some things!), the dialogue is so real you feel like you're eavesdropping, and the two actors are funny, bitter, sexy and imminently watchable. If you loved Before Sunset, you'll love Conversations - and if you haven't seen Before Sunset, you CRAZY! One caveat, the director made the unfortunate decision to show the entire movie in split screen. For example, if Carter and Eckhart are both on the screen at the same time, they're still split. Other times they'll be on the left half of the screen having a conversation and the right half will be showing something totally different. This proved to be nothing but a distraction for me, but I got used to it pretty quickly. Maybe those less prone to motion sickness would have an easier time with this device.
  
  
• King Kong - The festival ended with an outdoor screening of a cleaned up print of the original 1933 version of King Kong starring Fay Wray as starlet Ann Darrow. Man, does this movie hold up. You really feel for Kong and Wade noted that someone needs to Wickedize the story and tell it from Kong's perspective. This I would love to see. Fay Wray is beautiful and the movie is full of special effects that are remarkable when you consider they barely had sound in movies back then. It's also pretty funny - sometimes
  intentionally, sometimes not so. Kong is one chest-beating, native-stomping, dinosaur-strangling beast, but you can't help but love him. The movie we've been watching all these years on late night tv wasn't the full version. After the censors got to it in 1939, they removed seven scenes (some of the more violent ones of him chewing on people and the one of him stripping Wray). The cleaned up version has all of these back in, so it's as good as new. It will be very interesting to compare it to Peter Jackson's version coming out this Christmas. On looks alone, Naomi Watts's resemblance to Wray makes her a great choice as Ann Darrow and Jack Black should fair well as the lunatic director. As for the original, I highly recommend you see it on the big screen, preferably outside on a crisp star-filled night with a lot of rowdy hippies. I couldn't have asked for a better ending to the festival.

Here's the order of movies I liked best (because all things must be ranked):

1. Walk the Line
2. Conversations with Other Women
3. Capote
4. The Lost City
5. King Kong
6. Everything is Illuminated
7. Brokeback Mountain
8. President's Last Bang
9. Edmund

I feel really confident recommending 1-6 to everyone. So it's not like 6 sucked or anything. 1-3 were just all so awesome! Thomas heard local film critic Howie Moshkovitz on NPR this morning. From Telluride, he recommended four we didn't see: Cache (a new French film), Paradise Now, I'm King Kong (a King Kong documentary) and Army of Shadows (a movie made in the 60s about the French resistance during WWII - seems like they don't come off so well). Here's hoping a few of these come to the Denver Film Fest in October. If not, there's always Netflix.

Next time: A recap of the Telluride panel I saw and all my celeb sightings. There were lots!

Boulder Bumpersticker of the Day: Maybe the hokey pokey IS what it's all about.

Telluride Film Fest Part 1

Hey everyone, This weekend Thomas, Jen, Dave, Wade and I all went to the Telluride Film Festival. Telluride is the only place in the world where I could see 9 movies in 4 days and still wish I'd caught a couple more. It's also the only place where if you attend without a pass, you feel blessed no matter what the movie you manage to get into. We went up Friday and checked into our absolutely gorgeous condo in Mountain Village. It's been six years since I've been to Telluride and since then, a lot has changed. They've developed the area, but they've done it in an amazingly smart way. The condos, new restaurants, grocery stores, etc., have all been built up the mountain, so they don't overpower the town. To get to Mountain Village, rather than driving all the time, they have a free enclosed gondola that runs constantly that drops you off in the middle of town or Mt Village. We drove our car to the condo, parked it and didn't move it until we left. Why can't every place be this smart? Plus you got to admire the abundant and gorgeous scenery and wildlife along the 10 minute gondola ride. Now to the films ranked in order of viewing:

Friday:

• The Lost City - Andy Garcia brought this movie to Telluride and we saw it Friday night at the outdoor cinema. Prior to the movie, Garcia and his band played Cuban music for the crowd and got people dancing. The band was awesome and Garcia played keyboard (I got a couple of great pics that I'll publish shortly). The Lost City is based on a novel by Guillermo Cabrera Infante, Three Trapped Tigers, called the Ulysses of Cuba. The movie is about pre-revolutionary Havana and follows the different paths taken by brothers in a wealthy, intellectual family. Garcia plays Fico who owns a nightclub and Enrique Murciano (he's Danny from TV's Without a Trace) plays his revolutionary brother Ricardo. The movie is full of great music and good performances, but they could have spent a little more time showing different characters' motivations. The cinematography is beautiful, though I doubt much of it was actually filmed in Cuba given the anti-Castro and anti-Che slant of the film. I'm surprised Garcia was even able to get the movie made given Hollywood's infatuation with both. Instead Garcia showed how Cuba went from being repressed by Batista to terrorized by Castro. No one can tell you how bad living under a Communist/Marxist regime is like one who escaped it, or whose family escaped it. The Lost City definitely made me wish I could have seen Havana pre-Castro, as it looks like a very romantic place. Given its tropical setting it also reminded me of New Orleans, another Lost City and made me really glad I got to see it a couple of times before Katrina.

• Edmond -Director Stuart Gordon and star William H. Macy introduced this movie to us at the midnight show. The good news is that I didn't fall asleep. The bad news is that no one liked Edmond. It's based on the play by David Mamet, a notorious misanthrope, and Mamet also wrote the screenplay. Basically Edmond leaves his wife in the first five minutes and spends the rest of the movie in a downward spiral as he confronts the underbelly of NYC. There's nothing redeeming about this movie, and I do not recommend it. I must say though that the five of us talked about it again and again - debating the point, whether Edmond was a racist, a misogynist, or both, and introducing the phrase "pulling an Edmond" into the vernacular. So though I hated the movie, I'm glad I saw it. Mamet's wife Rebecca Pidgeon, Mena Suvari, Bai Ling, Joe Manegna (in my favorite part) and Julia Stiles all make brief appearances.

Saturday:
Saturday afternoon I got to see a great panel that I'll discuss in a subsequent entry. We spent the rest of the day walking around Telluride and shopping for Thomas some new outdoorsy clothes. This was our one really rainy day, so there were no movies for us until the midnight movie.

• Everything is Illuminated - Based on the book by Jonathan Safran Foer, Everything tells the story of the character Jonathan Safran Foer (Elijah Wood, aka Frodo....on yet another quest that ends up involving a ring, believe it or not) who travels to the Ukraine to find out about the woman who saved his grandfather during WWII. Jonathan is a pretty odd duck - a collector constantly putting arcane items in a variety of ziplock bags. He hires Alex (newcomer Eugene Hutz who in my mind stole the movie) to be his guide. Along for the ride are Alex's gripy grandfather and his deranged dog, Sammy Davis Junior Junior (aka the Seeing Eye Bitch). Part of the charm of the movie and the book (so I've heard, since I have not read it) is Alex's obsession with American culture and his mangling of American slang. The first half of Everything is really funny, but as Jonathan and crew discover the identity of the mystery woman who helped his grandfather, the movie takes a turn to the tragic. Anyone who's ever been to Telluride can tell you that this is a necessity for almost every film that makes it into the festival. Light-hearted flicks need not apply. But Everything never loses its sense of humor, pulls off the tragedy and turned out to be a festival favorite. Everything was introduced by first time director, Liev Schreiber, who complimented our rowdy midnight audience who waited in the rain for an hour to see his film as being its ideal audience. I'd have to say he was right. Schreiber has a good eye and did a great job, though I hope we continue to see him in front of the cameras as well.

Sunday:

• Brokeback Mountain - Thomas and I must have been among the few people going into this movie that knew the subject matter. The writeup in the festival guide definitely did not let on that the Ang Lee helmed movie was about two cowboys in the 1960s played by hotties Jake Gyllenhall and Heath Ledger that are gay. Yep, there was shock in the theater during the first graphic and violent coupling of two of Hollywood's most dreamed abould leading men. This happens early on, so I don't feel like I'm giving anything away. I'm really curious to see how this does in the box office. It's so not the feel good movie of the year. In fact, it's quite depressing. But the love story worked and the movie was beautifully filmed. Ledger's performance was especially good, though Thomas thought his accent was a bit too contrived. Also starring in the movie are Michelle Williams (Jen from Dawson's Creek who is now carrying Ledger's baby IRL), Anne Hathaway, and Randy Quaid. No one was there representing the movie because they were at the Venice Film Festival instead. As the T-ride spokeswoman said, it seemed like Ang should have been here since the movie was a Western.
  

I'll wrap up the rest of the movie reviews in my next entry. Let me just say though that the best movies are definitely yet to come.

-sunday

Telluride Bumpersticker of the Day: America needs an oil change.

p.s. A late Happy 37th Anniversary to Tom and Marlene and a late Happy Birthday to Jess!

How Brownie Got His Job

Hey everyone! I just heard on NPR that when Michael Brown was nominated in 2002 to be the deputy head of FEMA, the hearing lasted only 42 minutes and only four senators attended it. But what took the cake for me is that he was recommended by Ben Nighthorse Campbell of Colorado, my least favorite public official in our whole entire state - and we have some real screwballs, so that's saying something. My utter loathing of Campbell began when I once got stirred up on some issue and wrote all my congressmen and senators. Campbell was the only one that did not have an email address. I called to complain and they said they only took letters by mail or by fax. And this was like 3 years ago or something, not back in the 1980s. I did write a letter, but no surprise, I never heard back from him. That episode symbolized his utter disinterest in the needs of his constituents, and it looks like his bad behaviour continues to burn us. But back to the hearing - FOUR senators??? I guess they were too busy being wooed by lobbyists to attend. Does anyone in power actually do their jobs? Once again, there's very little in the news on this story, but I did find this article if you want to read more. Aarrgh!

-sunday

Berger under the Radar

Hey everyone, Here's a quick item on the luckiest guy on the planet right now: Sandy Berger. Due to all of the coverage of Hurricane Katrina, the media has barely reported the fact that he was fined $50,000 for taking classified docs from the National Archive, destroying them and then lying about it. This all occured during the 9-11 Commission's hearings. Berger was President Clinton's National Security Advisor. It really makes you wonder what the heck was in those documents. What does it take to send a politician to jail, anyway? There are only 2 articles on all of google news on this story at the time of this post.

-sunday