Innocent Bystander

If it's Halloween, that must mean...

It's time for Spooky Spooky Wolf Boy! It's our Halloween tradition since 2006. Yes, that makes this the FIFTH appearance of SSWB!

Now aren't you glad Halloween only comes 'round once a year?

 

Friday Foto #152...

This just confuses me...but Happy Halloween this weekend, nonetheless. To see more of my photos, Friday or otherwise, click here!

Back to the Future with Me...

I've been a little slow to adjust to being back in the "high life" again. After a work trip and a not-so-great vacation, it's been a week of jet lag, laziness, and movie/TV watching. I have to watch the finale of Mad Men once more, on the big screen (or at least as big as it gets at home), to make sure I didn't hallucinate the ending, and at that point I'll write something about that.

But I've spent the last two evenings with the very pleasant self-appointed "task" of viewing the new 25th anniversary edition Back to the Future Trilogy on Blu-ray, which debuted on Tuesday. I've seen these films at least a dozen times each, but I never get tired of them. Michael J. Fox's energy and Christopher Lloyd's wacky gravitas are hallmarks of all three films. But I don't think Crispin Glover (who appeared in only the first one), Thomas Wilson, and Lea Thompson get enough credit for their roles in this beloved trilogy of movies. Thompson was all of 22 when she got the role of Marty McFly's mom. And seriously, how twisted is the whole premise of the first film? Mom falls for her son when he goes back in time...hijinks almost ensue.

My favorite film of the three is the second one, aptly named "Part II." It's dark and complicated--you practically need a flow chart to keep track of everything, and luckily Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd) provides one, about midway through. Time travel is a fickle bitch, and once you settle in and start to think, now waitaminute..."If Marty goes back to 1955 a second time, wouldn't he already know he did this?"...you're doomed. It's better to just go with the flow. And I love the whole thing that director Robert Zemeckis discusses in the excellent series of new documentaries that appear on each disc: The ability to go back and revisit the first film from an entirely different point of view. Bob Gale's original story had a totally different third act to the second film, one that took place in the 1960s, where Lorraine (Marty's mom/Lea Thompson) was a hippie, protesting the Vietnam War. And for me, there's no better ending of a film than the moment Joe Flaherty shows up in the middle of the Hill Valley 1955 rainstorm with a letter for Marty McFly from Doc Brown, safely embedded almost 75 years in the past. Add to that scene the one of Marty running down the street and telling 1955 Doc Brown that he has to send him back--after he just SENT HIM BACK--and it's a classic moment in film history. It's a shame the third film (called--believe it or not--"Part III") didn't quite live up to the first two, although it's still enjoyable.

I can tell you that the Blu-ray versions of these films look absolutely stunning, and the new documentary (about an hour--in three parts--on the first film's disc, about a half-hour on the second--I have yet to watch the third film) are great, featuring new interviews with Fox, Thompson, Lloyd, and even Claudia Wells, who played Jennifer in the first film, along with various production people including director Robert Zemeckis, co-writer/producer Bob Gale, and executive producer Steven Spielberg. There are also trailers, outtakes (sadly very few), deleted scenes, and other vintage documentaries on the films. It's really cool to watch the remastered HD footage cut to original film scenes on the deleted ones, with all the grain and dirt and lighting problems. It really shows how much crisper and clearer the Blu-ray transfer is.

I was amazed at how fast-moving the first film was. It really clips along from beat to beat, much faster than I recalled (and I probably saw these films at least a couple of time within the last 5 years or so, since I had the original DVD release of the Trilogy). Back to the Future is one of those things I can put in the DVD player at any time and it immediately cheers me up. It's funny how the 1985 scenes seem so dated now--all that big hair, down vests, and denim--but the 1950s scenes seem so timeless. BTTF is that, in a word: Timeless.

The Addams Family

Lest you believe I had no fun at all on my little vacation in New York City last week, I did spring for a night at the thee-A-ter. I saw The Addams Family, starring Nathan Lane and Bebe Neuwirth, on Broadway. It hasn't gotten stellar reviews, but I found it to be a lot of fun with imaginative sets, great performances and a star or two who managed to cause their co-stars to break down on stage, only adding to the audience's fun.

Lane plays Gomez Addams, of course, and he adds his own special accent to the role, a bit of a Ricky Ricardo job with maybe a little Speedy Gonzalez thrown in. The accent is a useful tool for Lane, allowing him to make semi-funny lines even funnier (my favorite Gomez line: "What I lack in height, I make up for in shallowness!" he proudly proclaims in the second act). Bebe Neuwirth isn't given a lot to do but slink around with mega-cleavage (well...the dress is cut clear down to "Venezuela" as Gomez says early on, but Bebe is known for her legs, not her chest). In the second act, which is the more music-filled of the two, she's given more of a chance to sing and strut her stuff, revealing that Morticia does indeed have legs under that tight, down-to-the-floor dress, and yes, they're gartered and stockinged.

The rest of the cast is good, also, with Krysta Rodriguez as Wednesday, Jackie Hoffman as Grandma, and Kevin Chamberlin as Uncle Fester all stand-outs. Rodriguez can really belt a song (she should be on Glee) and her Wednesday is the lynchpin (in a play about Charles Addams' wacky nameless family, that word somehow seems like it should have a hidden evil meaning) of the plot: She's fallen in love with a "normal" person. The play goes on to explore--mainly in song--what the meaning of normal is as her Ohioan boyfriend and his mom and dad (played respectfully by Wesley Taylor, Terrence Mann, and Carolee Carmello) come to meet Wednesday's ooky and kooky family.

Both Lane and Jackie Hoffman brought the play to a halt at least three times with their effect on their co-stars. Lane twice got actor Terrence Mann laughing (the second time he urged him to go sit in the audience, as he was more needed there). Hoffman as Grandma brought the whole cast to laughter--and almost tears--during the dinner scene with her antics during her song in the "Full Disclosure" part of the show.

As enjoyable as the cast and songs are--there's no standout song, though--the sets and stagecraft of this show is what really makes it a wonder to behold. The 10-person "ghostly" chorus does double duty when it comes to singing and moving the set pieces around. There's some wonderfully imaginative stuff with Uncle Fester--who is in love with the moon--that involves him floating in the sky (somehow attached to a curtain, with other people providing his arms and legs) and there are also puppets. There's a giant lovestruck squid that lives under the house and Cousin It makes a brief appearance, plus Thing (the hand) is evident, as is an animated part of the curtain. The puppets and the incredible set--which places the Addams house in the middle of Central Park and utilizes a beautiful backdrop of NYC, plus numerous interior rooms on two levels--add a whole other dimension to the play and provides an amazing environment for the "family" to live in onstage.

I lucked out and got a $59 dollar seat near the top of the rear mezzanine, which only added to my appreciation of the set (even if it kept me from getting a really good peek at Bebe in all her glory). It was definitely worth it. You can go and see all the touring companies of shows you want, but there's nothing like a Broadway show ON Broadway. It's an amazing experience, and The Addams Family is proof positive of that.

The travel thing...

I think I've reached a point in my life where I don't like to travel anymore.

I was away for 10 days, part work, part vacation, and upon returning I've slipped into a dark funk that I can't seem to fight my way out of. Part of this is the inevitable "I have nothing to look forward to" feeling that I almost always get after a trip. Part of it is I didn't really like this vacation.

I went to New York City again. It really is the greatest city in the world to me, but this year's trip was dampened by a couple of things. First off, let me say I saw my dear friend Laurel again, and we got to spend a great day together, so that was the highlight of the whole trip.

But this time I had to stay in a different hotel, purely for financial and availability issues, and I didn't like it. As hotels go, it was in a great location, relatively quiet and clean but the room itself was tiny and depressing, with a bed that was situated right by the door (it was the only possible layout in the room, but still very disconcerting). Tiny I can live with; depressing...well, let's just say I don't normally need any help in that arena. I would have much preferred to have my old hotel back...and maybe next year I'll spring for the extra money and do so.

The flights were on time and uneventful, but I was really struck with how annoying the flight attendants were on both of them. On the way from San Francisco to NYC on the red-eye, they failed to do the second drink run that's supposed to help to wake us all up. For the most part they stayed in the back of the cabin and kept to themselves. On the flight from NYC to San Diego, the two male ones would NOT. SHUT. THE. FUCK. UP. and treated a visiting flight attendant, who was hitching a free ride, like she was Queen Elizabeth, waiting on her hand and foot. After we landed, one of them told the attendant who came on the plane to restock it (it was doing a red-eye return to NYC) that they had sold $590 worth of packaged meals, and that the airline (which shall remain nameless) had changed the order of how they do things, so they sold the meals first, thus pissing off everyone who wanted free drinks and snacks. As he put it, we all BITCHED about it. And we did.

I would not want to babysit a flight of about 130 people--including babies--for 6 hours. And I understand the frustration of being bitched at by people. It's okay for this flight attendant to vent, but he shouldn't be venting in earshot of one of the customers. It's entirely unprofessional. And this brings me back to my original point: I think I don't like to travel anymore, especially cross-country.

Beyond all this--I know, bitch, Bitch, BITCH--I developed another huge set of blisters on the bottom of my feet from my poor--and cheap--choice in footwear. That really put a damper on things, since I love to walk in NYC, especially Central Park. I ended up doing very little of that--and subsequently taking very few photos--because I was in pain most of the time. So the whole trip was a little ruined because of that...and I'm still in pain.

So maybe my New York days are over, maybe I'll just take small trips with quick flights, like to San Francisco or maybe even Seattle. I really don't like flying those long flights. But I'm also sure when next October rolls around, I'll be on a plane again to NYC, maybe with a better hotel and much better shoes.

RED (2010)

RED is probably the best action movie I've seen since the last Bourne film. Based on the WildStorm series and subsequent graphic novel collection by writer Warren Ellis and artist Cully Hammer, "RED" stands for "Retired Extremely Dangerous," a designation given to Frank Moses (Bruce Willis), Joe Matheson (Morgan Freeman), Marvin Boggs (John Malkovich), and Victoria (no last name given or probably necessary--Helen Mirren), all of whom are being hunted down by a team of CIA assassins because of their involvement in an operation in Guatemala ten years ago.

RED is pegged as an "action/comedy" and there are funny moments, most of them concerning Malkovich's nut job assassin and the winsome and delightful Mary-Louise Parker as Willis' earstwhile girlfriend, a woman he knows from the Veterans Administration, who helps process his retirement checks. He kidnaps her and brings her along for the ride when he figures out they've tracked him down by his conversations with her. And that ride is quite a ride, ranging from Kansas City to New Orleans to NYC to Washington DC and involving a dedicated CIA agent (Karl Urban), his tight-lipped boss (Rebecca Pidgeon), an oily politico bad guy (Richard Dreyfuss) and a vice president (Julian McMahon) who has his eyes on the White House.

RED is thoroughly enjoyable, fun and fast-moving and doesn't let up for a second. Willis is extremely low-key in this one (something he's been criticized for), and I found that incredibly appealing. Parker is wonderful (I'm going to have to start watching Weeds, I guess...those eyes!), and everyone else is obviously having a great time, too, especially Helen Mirren, who dons combat boots with her evening gown, the better to brace herself when she lets loose with machine gun. This is one of the best movies of the year, I think...I can't wait for it to come out on DVD.

 

What day is it and where am I?

I suppose it's Saturday and I'm back home in San Diego. Regular posting will resume in the next few days as I slowly gather my wits (what's left of them), unpack, and let the huge blisters on my feet (wrong shoes + too much walking) heal. It's good to be home (I'd been gone for ten days), and this is the first time I've come home to the new apartment, so things are a little...bewildering.

Friday Foto #151...

Big statue on the Big Bay.  To see more of my photos, Friday or otherwise, click here!

On the road again...

Today is a travel day for me, as I head out of San Francisco and a very successful APE show to parts well-known and always beckoning. It's a chance to see an old and dear friend in the greatest city in the world, so even though a red-eye is involved (or as I refer to it, "floating hotel room for a night"), I'm looking forward to leg 2 of my trip (even if it isn't clad in a sexy thigh-high stocking).

Posting may be light--or non-existent--for the next few days. Cut me some slack...I'M ON VACATION!

It's the final day of APE in San Francisco!

Come visit me at the Alternative Press Expo (APE) today! It's at the Concourse Exhibition Center, located at 635 8th St. in San Francisco. It's chock-full of great comics, creators, programs, workshops and events, and includes the great Lynda Barry premiering her new book, Picture This.

What are you waiting for? Shut down the damn computer and get going!

More info--including a complete schedule of Sunday's programs and workshops, and a complete exhibitor list--HERE.