The Bookhouse Boys discussion

We formed this group around the podcast and book club idea, but I think we'd really just like this group to be a nice bunch of conversationalists. After all, that's how Matt, Jason and I met and became friends!

So, everyone feel free to start topics about whatever you want to talk about. Here's one where you can tell the group what you're watching... movies, tv, plays, def poetry slams, dog shows. We want to know!

I've recently gotten really into the tv show Psych, so that's been taking up a lot of my time. Otherwise, I've been on-again-off-again watching the Avant-Garde series, a collection of experimental short films spanning several decades. I love film of all sorts, but particularly when the filmmakers take a chance and produce something outside of the usual formulas.

Others?

Renee and I have been enjoying the new AMC series The Killing. We're rationing out the third season of Breaking Bad, 'cause we know the next one won't be out until end of summer. I love Breaking Bad because the show is a roller-coaster of "oh, sh!t!" moments, but that's balanced with solid acting and fleshed-out characters. The characters will do certain things and when you think about why they behaved or reacted in that way, there are layers to the response.
Other than that, I've decided to resume my goal to see everything Criterion has released (that I haven't seen recently or a hundred times). Now I just need to set aside 3.5 hours for The Seven Samurai because it's been a loooong time!

I just wrote a blog post about how I've been a nerd lately in my TV watching (http://wishingheart.wordpress.com/201...). Dave and I have been watching Psych as he mentioned, as well as a few episodes of Monk and also The Larry Sanders Show. But I watch more TV than he does, so I have my own shows I watch without him, too. I just finished watching Firefly (and Serenity) for the first time, and I've started watching the most recent incarnation of Doctor Who, and those nerdy things are what I talk about on the blog.

Jen wrote: "The Larry Sanders Show""
You have my undying respect for that! One of my all-time favorites.

We've been trying to get ourselves up for watching the copy of the doc Inside Job that we've had from Netflix for a month, but after a long day, I'm rarely in the mood to get myself so angry I spit bile all over the house like Brundlefly.

Jen wrote: "I just finished watching Firefly (and Serenity) for the first time..."

What did you think?

Heather and I need a new show to watch. Right now we're watching Avatar: The Last Airbender, which I do like, but it's not something to really sink our teeth into.

I'm halfway through the first season of Sons of Anarchy. I brought oversized expectations to it based on the fawning reviews I read, so I was initially underwhelmed, but it is solid drama, and it's growing on me as I go.

I actually really liked them, though not to the point where I'm obsessed with hunting down all info and discussing ad infinitum. And the theme song is TERRIBLE. But the show is pretty good, actually, as is the movie.

They all hated the theme song at first, apparently (besides Whedon himself, of course.) I grew to like it...somehow.

Jen wrote: "I actually really liked them, though not to the point where I'm obsessed with hunting down all info and discussing ad infinitum. And the theme song is TERRIBLE..."
Yeah, I agree. I watched the whole series on the treadmill and had to mute the opening. I think it way oversells the whole this-is-a-post-Civil-War-western-in-space thing. We get it. I much prefer Dr. Horrible's music.

We're in the middle of Big Love Season 4... we watched 3 episodes last night, which is pretty unheard of for me (I usually get too antsy to watch more than an hour of television at a time), but those episodes were NUTS. Such a weird little soap opera... love it.

Jen and I got invited out to see Thor last night... it was ok. Depends what you want to see, I guess... a lot of the fighting and set designs and costumes were cool, but they really fell down on pacing the film in any sort of way that made sense.

Spoilers ahead, I guess (if you see the movie, there's no such thing as a spoiler, because you can see every plot twist coming from at least half an hour away)... Thor is a jerk, Odin banishes him to Earth so he'll learn a little humility. Thor spends a grand total of 2 days on Earth, in which time he has a complete change in character and falls madly in love with a mortal woman, Jane Foster (and she with him). This happens so quickly it leaves the entire third act feeling unearned... we don't see nearly enough character-building to buy into either of these eventualities.

It's one of those movies that proceeds so according to formula that even the filmmakers kinda wink at you and say, "Look, we know how all this is going to end up, right? Are we really going to have to show you scenes progressing plot and character that make this whole thing make sense, or can we just skip to the cool fighty parts?"

Still, as a dopey summer movie, it's kinda fun and at least a bit original in subject matter. The rainbow bridge and bi-frost are very cool (if WAY overused... it felt to me like about a full quarter of the movie relied on those sets), the cast is great, and there are some good moments of levity that keep the whole thing from taking itself too seriously. Annoyingly, it is in 3-D, for no reason I could discern other than all movies are apparently in 3-D now.

I'd say it's worth renting... don't waste too much money going to the theater, though.

The only thing I have to add to Dave's observations above is that the first third of the movie is really, really awesome. It's the last two-thirds where the pacing is blech. Oh, and Thor is HAWT, for the ladies. I don't normally get all melty over big muscle-bound men - not even my type really, the blonde muscle-heads - but this is an exception. Still, definite rental. Without 3-D, if they ever make movies that way again.

Jen wrote: "Oh, and Thor is HAWT, for the ladies. I don't normally get all melty over big muscle-bound men - not even my type really, the blonde muscle-heads - but this is an exception."
Renee decided she'd go to see it with me after seeing pics of the lead shirtless. She also loves Stringer Bell, so she was already 'invested.' No Robert Downey, Jr., cameo, huh? That would really seal the deal.
Thanks for your thoughts on the plot and pacing. Sounds like we should definitely wait for a cheap matinee (if not Netflix).

No Robert Downey, Jr... Sam Jackson makes a brief appearance (as you'd expect), and they put Hawkeye in there for a short scene (a plot point that seemed like it was setting up something, but never went anywhere... I guess that's to be continued in the Avengers flick).

Oh, and speaking of hot men for tha ladies, Stan Lee and JMS have cameos...

We're watching They Might Be Giants DVDs: Here Come the ABCs, Here Come the 123s, and Here Comes Science pretty much on a loop. We're thinking we should just get a bumper sticker that says "WE'RE RAISING OUR CHILD TMBG!"
We went to see True Grit the other night and loved every frame of it. I would watch anything by the Coens or anything with Jeff Bridges: Jeff Cuts His Toenails! Leftover Night! Time to Pay the Bills...anything!

Matt wrote: "I would watch anything by the Coens or anything with Jeff Bridges: Jeff Cuts His Toenails! Leftover Night! Time to Pay the Bills...anything

Jeff Bridges has always seems like a genuinely odd dude to me. He comes from the same school of weird mannerisms as people like Malkovich, Walken or Phoenix.

And yet he's starred in several of my favorite movies of all time: The Fisher King, The Big Liebowski, etc. He was great in True Grit too. So I guess I can't help but call him one of my favorite actors at the same time I'm scratching my head.

This afternoon, the wife and I caught Die Valkure, part two of Wagner's Ring cycle. The local college is showing the Metropolitan Opera's simulcasts. As you might expect, the production is just spectacular, as are the performances. Highest recommendation.
We saw Das Rheingold last year, and have Siegfried in November and Gotterdammerung in February to complete the cycle.
Fifteen hours of German opera.... truly one for the bucket list.

@Matt: I've been meaning to get Here Comes Science; I really need to get on that. They were the subject of a wonderful Radiolab short maybe a year ago (there's that show again!). My kids, ages 10 and 6, enjoy Schoolhouse Rock, so TMBG's stuff should be automatic for them... and for their parents.
Thanks for the reminder!

Jim wrote: "This afternoon, the wife and I caught Die Valkure, part two of Wagner's Ring cycle. The local college is showing the Metropolitan Opera's simulcasts. As you might expect, the production is just s..."
I remember hearing that Radiolab! :)
The opening tune won us over: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ty33v7...
I can't recommend the CD/DVD enough...but there's one caveat: Prepare to have another 15+ songs stuck in your head at once.

Tonight's family movie night: root beer, popcorn, and My Neighbor Totoro after dinner. We're very excited.

Matt wrote: "I remember hearing that Radiolab!"

Me too! Where's that "D'oh!" emoticon...?

Heather wrote: "Totoro!!!! Squee!!!!"

We loved it. I normally have to read The Tao of Pooh or something to feel that good about this crazy old thing called 'life.'

Jason wrote: "Matt wrote: "I would watch anything by the Coens or anything with Jeff Bridges: Jeff Cuts His Toenails! Leftover Night! Time to Pay the Bills...anything

Jeff Bridges has always seems like a genuin..."

Watched thirty minutes of the original True Grit and it was all I could stand. Should we watch the remake?

Sherry wrote: "Watched thirty minutes of the original True Grit and it was all I could stand. Should we watch the remake? "
Yes! Bridges and Damon are great; Hailee Steinfeld is the rock solid center of the picture. Typically offbeat Coen characters and narrative -- and that's a very good thing.

Sherry wrote: "Watched thirty minutes of the original True Grit and it was all I could stand. Should we watch the remake?"
I think so. Bridges' portrayal of Rooster Cogburn was enthralling, but everyone is rock-solid in it.

Watch out, Sherry - you're going to give Dave a heart attack. The original True Grit is one of his favorites :) We haven't seen the new one yet, though we definitely want to - just hasn't come up in the queue yet. We're currently on vacation (big family Disney vacation with the niece) and re-watched such classic Disney favorites as Robin Hood and Peter Pan this week.

Man, what I wouldn't give to be on vacation right now. :(
Finally got to finish re-watching The Seven Samurai last night. I don't think Kurosawa intended it to be watched in 26-minute chunks, but maybe he didn't have kids. Next up in the Criterion Collection queue is Fellini's Amarcord, which I've never seen before.
We have a sitter tonight, so we get to see (on its last night) Werner Herzog's Cave of Forgotten Dreams on the big screen in 3-D and I'm just giddy about it!!

I LOVE Amarcord. A totally inspiring flick, to me.

Haven't watched much over the past week except for Disney movies and live productions, which, I have to say, have been extremely impressive to me. Considering I've never cared about Disney a day in my life until this week, it's a pretty big surprise. Sure, the messages tend towards the facile and schmaltzy, but they know how to make the productions really excite an audience.

Heather wrote: "Plenty of time to watch 25 more 24-minute episodes. That's only 10 hours."
:| eep

I just started re-watching the first season of Scrubs. Man, that was a very different show when it started out. Still funny, but a very different pacing.

We just started a BBC series called The Trip with Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon (the 6 eps have been edited into a feature for the States). It's an ad-libbed travelogue with the two comedians playing themselves while touring the inns and restaurants of northern England. Very loose and fun, so far, with a surprising emotional core that pulled us in and made us want more.

Watched My Dinner With Andre for the first time yesterday and LOVED it. I'm watching the special features right now, interviews with Andre Gregory and Wallace Shawn, and I just wish I had the time to watch the movie again before I have to take it back today. I think this is definitely a future purchase.

My parents watched after our monkey so we could go see Thor last night. Thanks to Dave's caveat about the issues with the plotting and pacing, we totally enjoyed the picture. Knowing that those problems were there allowed us to reset our expectation and just dig the fun parts. I liked Hemsworth as Thor, but wondered every time Portman spoke why she's ever allowed to act EVER. Her acting is either disingenuous or wooden, two modes I don't dig. Renee and I were wondering where the Loki actor came from. We liked him. It was neat to see the cameo of a certain Avenger in there, too. The cast of the Avengers film is rock-solid, in my opinion.

Oh, praise Allah! To finally have met another person who finds Natalie Portman wooden and terrible... I've had this argument SO many times....

Watched High and Low, the Kurosawa film, today. A solid 145 minutes of gripping police-procedural drama that was a real treat. Kurosawa was such a versatile director; the range in his filmography is amazing!

Renee has been reading The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo over the weekend for her book club that meets tomorrow (now that's dedication...and procrastination!), so I've been watching foreign films so she doesn't get sucked in by the dialogue. I watched some okay Spanish horror films last night (To Let and The Baby's Room) and started the haunting Onibaba directed by Kaneto Shindô. Looks great so far. In some broad ways, it reminds me of Shipwrecks, so far.

You could be mean and watch the Swedish film version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo... :)

Heather and I have watched all three of the Sherlock episodes/movies so far and we loved them all. Six months to wait for more is criminal!

Jen wrote: "You could be mean and watch the Swedish film version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo... :)"
I thought about it. >:)

Jason wrote: "Heather and I have watched all three of the Sherlock episodes/movies so far and we loved them all. Six months to wait for more is criminal!"
Agreed. We're both fans and Renee's never read a Sherlock story and I love them all, so the show's doing something right.

I'm trying to watch a bunch of Criterion Collection films that are being removed tomorrow, but I'm not finding the time. I am making sure to watch Ascenseur pour l'échafaud (Elevator to the Gallows), a noir thriller with one of the most gorgeous and sultry scores ever by Miles Davis and some French jazz cats.
Considering going to see Green Lantern tonight while my mom's in town (free babysitter!), but I'm not hearing anything good about it. : |

Go see Super 8 instead. It lived up to all of my "child of the '80s" expectations.

Jason wrote: "Go see Super 8 instead. It lived up to all of my "child of the '80s" expectations."
Good suggestion. TANX!

Let us know what you think of Elevator to the Gallows...Dave and I watched that a while back and had thoughts about it.

Jen wrote: "Let us know what you think of Elevator to the Gallows...Dave and I watched that a while back and had thoughts about it."
Will do. It will be weird to see it, because I've been obsessed with the album for more than 15 years. Every note and alternate take is seared into my soul.

Heather and I watched The Rocketeer for the first time. That was a lot of fun.

Black Swan.

Jason wrote: "Black Swan."
We have that home from Netflix! We started streaming Steve Coogan's Saxondale last night. Damned funny stuff.

Matt wrote: "We started streaming Steve Coogan's Saxondale last night. Damned funny stuff."

The clip you attached was pretty funny. I've heard of him, of course, but not that show.

Yesterday I watched Requiem for a Dream. Kind of an impromptu Aranofsky film festival.

Jason wrote: The clip you attached was pretty funny. I've heard of him, of course, but not that show."
I hadn't either. The friend that I turned on to The Trip tipped me off to it as a thank-you. Considering that I went to their page for that series and was not made aware of Saxondale's existence or the fact that it was streaming tells me they need to keep working on their recommendation scripts. : |

Jason wrote: "Black Swan."

Three days later....

AND???
I saw it in the theater, and thought it was damned good. I even enjoyed Vincent Cassel's performance.
Just curious to hear Jason's thoughts because Matt and Dave are on record regarding Ms. Portman's acting. She can be mannered, or ill-suited to the material, but I never find her as horrid as MH and DA obviously do.
And I thought she was brilliant in Black Swan. So there. :P

I thought Portman was good. For much of the film, her eye rolling anguish and shrinking fear seemed a bit over the top, but considering the arc of her character and other performances in Aranofsky films (Ellen Burstyn, for example), I think it was what was asked of her.

The key for me, and something I was wondering about almost the entire film, was whether she could make me believe the transformation at the end. And she did. The combination of acting, editing, direction and special effects at the moment of the black swan's "arrival" was a cinematic perfect storm.

I knew I'd seen Vincent Cassel before but I had no idea where. Turns out it was in La Haine (and maybe Brotherhood of the Wolf)

Jason wrote: "Yesterday I watched Requiem for a Dream. Kind of an impromptu Aranofsky film festival."
I have Requiem and Pi on the shelf here... somewhere. I'm gonna try to watch them this week. Also want to catch X-Men First Class while it's still around.

Last night we watched Chess In Concert. My wife loved it -- she's loved the show soundtrack for 25 years; I was okay with it.
And the kids recently found Phineas and Ferb episodes on Netflix. So I've lately been watching -- and loving -- those.