In addition to thinking about the future (Wedding, Moving, etc), I've also been looking at the past, in a most tangible sense. Comic books that I have not read in over a decade have been cluttering up my storage space for some time now. With the help of my buddy A-Man, a sometimes comic book dealer, I was able to reduce the size of my collection from ten boxes to three. I have no nostalgia for the individual comic issue as medium of storytelling; I got rid of all my X-Men issues, except the first one I ever purchased (one for nostalgia, I suppose), and the rest I will recollect one day in either trade paperback form, or perhaps even on some iPad-like device. I read them for the stories, not the vintage.
Another Chaplin film last Monday night at the Michigan Theater - Modern Times (1936), which was preceded by his two-reeler, Pay Day. Modern Times has some highly iconic and brilliant moments, and Paulette Goddard is pretty easy on the eyes, but I wouldn't rank this film nearly as high in his repertoire as some critics do. City Lights (1931) and The Gold Rush (1925) are laugh-a-minute affairs, and to me, Times is somewhat disjointed in parts - even more episodic than Chaplin usually is. Still, watching the Tramp trying to wait tables through a mob, or getting jacked up on cocaine in prison (yep), made it well worth the price of admission.
Introduced Calamity to the Schwarzenneger classic Total Recall (1990), as part of her Pre-Wedding Duties; she loved it, as I had anticipated (She even suggested a double-feature with Robocop, which, quite shockingly, I declined. Damn my need for sleep!). About halfway through Dr. Strangelove for the Kubrick-athon, and that's the first one of his films that she's been struggling with. Not hating it, but not fully engaged. I can't tell you how many people I've shown that particular film to who fell asleep on first viewing, only to fall in love with it later on. Strangelove is the textbook example of the slow burn.
Since the online consensus on Paul seems to be "It was ok", I guess that's another potential temptation to avoid this year (To be honest, I'll probably watch it on video). Like I said in my review, I thought Your Highness was a ton of fun, though I doubt it has much replay value.
Darren Aronofsky isn't doing The Wolverine anymore. . . Shit. That's all I have to say about that. No director lined up to take his place yet. God, I hope he doesn't make that ridiculous sounding Noah's Ark movie he's been talking about. The man is a brilliant visual stylist - but as a writer. . .
World War Z and Dune adaptations falling apart - no surprise there. You mean the Hollywood franchise factory is having trouble with a tension-free zombie book and a big-budget space epic with virtually no action? Great books do not always make great films, unless you're willing to take some fairly large liberties with the adaptations. That's something I really enjoy about old Hollywood: They realize that Frankenstein the novel wouldn't really work on screen, so they change it to work better for the medium. Stop being so goddamn protective of the material, fanboys and fangirls; the books will still be on the shelf where you left them when you come home from the theater.
Oooo!!! Found some old Rue Morgue issues, and my 100 Bullets trades. See what cleaning out the closet can do for ya? Time for some re-reading. . .
FREDERICK OPINES:
MODERN TIMES - GREAT
TOTAL RECALL - MASTERPIECE
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