It's a Wrap

You know you don't get to choose your covers right? Writing a book is like birthing a baby and then having someone else dress them. All this work and you don't get to pick what they wear? How is that fair? Well, it's not about being fair, it's about expertise. Just because you can write doesn't you know a thing about what looks good on a book shelf. The point of the book cover is to move units. Sure, some are artistic and truly works of art,...

Hitting the Highs

I'd never heard of this Broadway show before this week but it seemed like something that might be worth watching. Plans for finally watching Wicked on Broadway never coalesced and Spring Awakening wasn't age appropriate, plus it's playing in San Diego. In the Heights won the Tony's in 2008 and the few people I knew who'd seen it raved.Basically, In the Heights is a hip hop version of Rent starring Latinos set in the Bronx. Also similarly to Rent,...

Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008)

As the movie begins, an annoying voiceover sets the stage. Vicky and Cristina are off to Barcelona for the summer. Thus the title of the movie. Imaginative eh? Woody Allen loves to talk about relationships and this one's no different. Love triangles, open relationships, failed relationships, unrequited relationships, and unfulfilling relationships, this movie's got them all.First off, Javier Bardem is amazing. His character here obliterates...

Elegy (2008)

Not that I knew this, of course, but an elegy is "a mournful, melancholy, or plaintive poem, esp. a funeral song or a lament for the dead." That'll go a long way toward explaining the movie, which is about the fear of death (growing old more specifically), conscious selfishness, emotional unavailability, and a May-December romance between Sir Ben Kingsley and Penelope Cruz. Both are wonderful in their roles and they carry off the chemistry beautifully.In...

Stuff I've Been Reading 8

BOOKS READ:Red Prophet - Orson Scott CardAfter the Quake - Haruki MurakamiSkellig - David AlmondCharmed Thirds - Megan McCaffertyTeen Girlfriends - Julia DeVillersWonder Boys - Michael ChabonMary Jane - Judith O'BrienIt's so hard to recommend books to people. Even when I personally love a book, I'm at best sixty percent positive someone else will like it. Usually it's a toss up. That differs from movies quite a bit doesn't it? A good movie is a good movie, regardless of whether it's your particular genre or not. If you ask me if a movie is...

Wall-E (2008)

As the obvious direct descendent of Johnny 5, Wall-E is definitely pretty charming. I mean, I was worried that this movie would completely suck since Pixar is definitely in need of some hits (although maybe not since critics and awards loved their last few films, but I generally yawned through Cars and Ratatouille). People were telling me Wall-E was a must see. Well, I must saw it and I was a tad underwhelmed.Technologically, Pixar is amazing...