2007
her husband of nineteen years danced madly at her feet
maura @ 9:15 pm
Lately I am really jonesing to go the movies.
Movies (in the theater) are something that we’ve mostly given up since Gus came along. Tickets are so expensive and babysitting is so expensive that we’ve only seen a handful of movies in the past six yrs. Less than ten, certainly.
We do use Netflix, but even our enthusiasm for that seems to wax and wane. Movies are so loooong these days, not served in bite-sized chunks like TV. Of course, while I realize that if you watch 4 episodes of a show (cough, 30 Rock, cough) in a row then you could have watched a movie, for some reason we still find ourselves gravitating to TV more often than movies.
But I read the paper and the New Yorker and Entertainment Weekly, so I know what time it is with the movies, sorta. And right now there are three movies that I are really making me want to plunk down the ca$h:
1. The Golden Compass: This book, it is so amazing. I haven’t read it in a few years and am rereading it now and MAN I’d forgotten how amazing it is, miss-your-subway-stop amazing. The previews look lush, but the reviews are lukewarm. After reading a this review that Jonathan sent me I am chomping at the bit somewhat less, but I still want to see it.
The drag is that I think Gus is still a leetle bit too young for this, so we can’t bring him along. Plus I am going to have to play the snooty librarian card here and insist that he read the book first, esp. if the reviews are accurate.
2. Juno: Thinking about this movie always puts the Throwing Muses song of the same title right into my head. This cute little movie is also being reviewed every which where recently. BUT, these reviews have been completely positive. Jason Bateman! Michael Cera! Jennifer Garner! What could be bad about that? No CGI, so it’s not big-screen-necessary, so we will probably wait on it. But it’s on the list, oh yes it is.
3. Control: Here in NYC this movie is still playing in a few places, though I’m sure it’ll be leaving the theaters soon. Again, good reviews. Poor Ian Curtis (though I must admit to mixed feelings because I like New Order at least as much as Joy Division, sometimes more, and who knows how things would have turned out had he not died?). The aged music geek in me requires a screening of this film (pronounced FIL-um). Would be nice to see in the theater, all theatrical-like, but I guess not required. Another for the Netflix queue.
5 comments on “her husband of nineteen years danced madly at her feet”
http://weblogs.swarthmore.edu/burke/?p=467
and
http://weblogs.swarthmore.edu/burke/?p=469
“But in any event, it’s no loss to fantasy or to art if the film of The Golden Compass doesn’t grind to a storytelling halt so that Richard Dawkins can guest-star in a Very Special Episode of My Little Atheist.”
I’ll probably still see it.
Good links, Daniel. We will probably still see it too. I’m nearly done with the book and prepared to be disappointed by the movie, but one of the commenters on the second post mentioned that it was nice to see all of the fantastic elements of the book rendered visually, and I realized that I’m looking forward to that, too.
Anne, I’d say no for the book for Max for a while. I know he’s an advanced reader, but the book really deals with a lot of losing the innocence of childhood themes, and I think it’s too much (and a bit incomprehensible) for a kid under 10. The movie takes a lot of those themes out, but I think leaves the violence in.
YOU should read it, though! If you want to get off my hit list, that is. :)
We still miss Arrested Development, too, sigh. But STOP THE PRESSES — Pee Wee is in Pushing Daisies?!?!?! Oh no, another TV show to watch! He did also guest star on a 1st season episode of 30 Rock, with Tina Fey, my new TV girlfriend.
I found the book in the library (the home version–you know, the room with all the shelves?) I thought it was my brother’s but it’s Ben’s. (The other Ben.) No, we’re not letting Max read or see it yet, based on hearsay but that’s all I have to go on right now.
Yep, PW on PD (have not seen): http://remote.lohudblogs.com/2007/11/20/paul-reubens-talks-about-pushing-daisies/
I have to tell my brother (that Ben!) We were just cracking up the other day saying “Grace, back in the box!”
Har, I was thinking that it’s time to break out the Christmas special, too! Just today I was singing to myself: “Pee-Wee’s Christmas, Merry Merry Christmas.” A classic!
“Golden Compass” got mixed reviews. Also, I read somewhere that it’s too violent for younger kids. I never read it, so you’ll have to put me on your librarian hit list! (They do keep hit lists, don’t they?)
“Juno,” wow, how happy that my tv husband, the totally underrated Mr. Bateman, is getting work! And his little Arrested Dev’t son! How I miss them! It’s hardly worth getting up out of bed knowing that AD is no more. SIGH I need to get into “Pushing Daisies” for the Pee Wee factor, but I just haven’t the strength.
“Control”–get it on Netflix. I probably couldn’t stay up long enough to watch a triple feature (pushing 40 is SUCH hard work!), but it would go well with “Party Monster” and “Sid & Nancy.”