A Fable About Fatigue

There once was a bear who lived in the far north.
There was a time when the bear had the love of a she-bear and cubs but that was long ago.
The bear was very old.
He had been alone for a very long time.
Every winter he would hibernate.
Every spring he would stumble out of his den confused and starving.
Every summer he would fish the salmon runs.
Every fall he would gorge himself on anything he could.
Repeat.
He had been doing this for many years.
He was tired of the routine.
Tired of the solitude.
Tired of it all.
But still he went through the motions.
Eating and sleeping, sleeping and eating.
He found no joy in any of it.
One day while he was foraging a pack of wolves came upon him.
There was a time when he could have fended them off.
But the bear simply sighed, laid down, and closed his eyes.
The wolves began to slowly circle.
Time passed.
The wolves moved on, satiated.
The bear was no more.

To Put One Brick Upon Another

To put one brick upon another,
Add a third and then a forth,
Leaves no time to wonder whether
What you do has any worth.

But to sit with bricks around you
While the winds of heaven bawl
Weighing what you should or can do
Leaves no doubt of it at all.
-Philip Larkin

'Jane Got A Gun' A Review

Jane Got A Gun is the long-in-production western about Jane(Natalie Portman) making a stand against the Bishop Boys gang in 1871 New Mexico. The film opens with Jane making bread in her New Mexico homestead with her daughter playing in the yard. Her husband Bill(Noah Emmerich) is seen on the horizon but as he approaches slumps on his horse unconscious. Bill, severely injured from gunshot wounds, tells Jane the Bishops are coming. Jane leaves her daughter at a friends and goes to seek help from her former fiance Dan(Joel Edgerton). He agrees and as the two set about fortifying the homestead for the eventual confrontation flashbacks reveal their stories.

Portman as the titular lead does a decent job but she has to work against the less than ideal break-neck pacing as well as some illogical plot details, although she is strong the characterization might benefit from a bit more use of the eponymous gun. Emmerich is good as he always is, one of Hollywood's go-to "that guy" supporting actors. Edgerton puts in the best performance, the most fully formed and compelling, mostly because his character has the clearest and rudimentary motivations. Ewan McGregor as John Bishop is oddly delicious as the villain, maybe because he never gets to play bad guys or some combination of flat nondescript american accent, poorly dyed black hair, and unintentional ambiguity give the performance a bizarre uniqueness that makes it rise above the convention that is its context.

The biggest issue with Jane Got A Gun is simply its lack of ambition. Everything is very by-the-book including the dramatic score and shots of Portman riding a horse at sunset. All the narrative information is interesting but the way it is stitched together makes it feel as if whole swatches have been lost, the story moves inexorably forward frequently sacrificing coherence or emotional logic in order to simply hit the important plot points and get to the end as quickly as possible. The flashbacks only serve to distract from the story and deflate the tension building up between the characters in the present. Although there is some pertinent information much of the content of the flashbacks could be conveyed by simple implication or expositional dialogue.

Not wholly success, not wholly failure.

Rent It.

'World Of Tomorrow' A Review

World Of Tomorrow is an animated short about a young girl visited by her third generation clone and taken to the future on the eve of the worlds destruction. Emily Prime(Winona Mae) is in a blank white room and a communication unit begins to ring eventually displaying Emily Clone(Julia Pott) who tells Emily Prime she is her clone calling from 227 years in the future and briefly outlines the different technological advances that have occurred and the various societal changes because of them. Emily Clone then transports Emily Prime to the future and shares with her various important memories of her life. This concludes with Emily Clone extracting an early memory of Emily Prime's and sending her back to her present.

Mae, a little girl herself, voices Emily Prime beautifully, it feels as if the dialogue is improvised. Pott utilizes a flat monotone throughout which feels authentic for a third generation clone but her performances also hints at an ocean of unexpressed melancholy which is so evocative it is almost heartbreaking.

Conceptually the film is incredibly rich, the simple animation is extremely potent in conveying this image of the technologically advanced but ultimately isolating future. It paints a bleak future but one where human emotion and connection are still very much alive. A future where humanity, however disjointed, still has hope.

Available on Netflix as well as in select cities as part of the Oscar Nominated Shorts presentation.

Don't Miss It.

For Ron

Tonight there was a going away show for Ron at CIC, he leaves this weekend for Bulgaria on a Fulbright scholarship. I wrote this for him and read it as part of the evening.

We all are here tonight to honor Dr. Ron. A sophisticated and eclectic appreciator and practitioner of the arts. A kind man. Wise, humble, and supportive. Instead of reciting a laundry list of Ron’s admirable qualities, of which there are many, or detailing my relationship with Ron, he means a great deal to me, I’d like to honor Ron’s vocation Psychology and delve a little deeper into the why of this evening. Why are we here, why was he able to engender such friendships as are displayed this evening transcending theaters, teams, generations, and that oh so dirty word cliques, why Ron.

This community that we operate within is guided by the tenant “yes and” and claims the dictum of support. This manifests itself in a lot of talk about fellowship and togetherness but the reality is much thinner. We don’t necessarily make a real effort to see each others shows, when we do we can’t help but judge. We gather a group of friends around us or join one already established and rarely do we stray socially or collaboratively. We develop loyalties, we talk shit, we exclude. With a community so broad we don’t have time to get to know everyone especially those with less talent, skill, or divergent interest. We have preferences regarding specific theaters and styles of performance which in turn dictates our social circle. We espouse support, we teach it, we preach it, but it is rarely in actuality practiced.

Enter Dr. Ron at the time Ph.D. candidate Ron. A man who loves improv. Is passionate about taking classes and learning. Who religiously attends shows, with a zeal that eclipses any of ours during our early fervent throws of improv obsession. He comes to like certain teams more than others, some of which he will grace with his weekly virtually unfaulty attendance but never does he end his quest to see everything, and, by his simple presence, support everyone. Through this unflagging desire to watch and learn, this pure appreciation for the artform of improv, and his open, magnanimous, good-natured spirit all of us and more not in attendance tonight were drawn to Ron. We, regardless of theater affiliation, age, comedic philosophy, or social faction, are glad to call him friend.

This unbridled inclusion is not granted on your average improv student. Who would typically have to prove their worth by ability or chronological endurance in order to accumulate the scope of camaraderie on display this evening. Why then was Ron able to surmount these, however justifiable, boundaries, prejudices, and restrictions. I would allege the reality is that we, the improv community, are only tacitly supportive that we merely present its veneer when what we actually are is exclusive while persuading ourselves and pretending that we aren’t. And we were drawn to Ron as the embodiment of that ideal that we espouse- inclusion, openness, and generosity.

Now I don’t believe our community can be some utopic extended family, nor should it be. We deal with art and entertainment, ultimately subjective and best left to flourish when unfettered. But there certainly is a lesson here. Ron leaves shortly for Bulgaria, he may be back in six months, he may not, we may be here when he gets back, we may have moved on ourselves. But what we can take with us forever onward is the example Ron has set for us. One of kindness, amity and grace. Of unbridled wonder for this thing we have the great fortune to get to do. Because yes this thing we do, this community, can be isolating, can be destructive. But we, through collective understanding and mutual respect, have the ability to move past entertainment into true inspiration and incite real change.

All The Small Things

It is easy to be cruel.
On the crosswalk.
In the car.
At the restaurant.
It is easy to lash out
at all the perceived inconveniences
infractions and impositions.
How dare the world impede
on our plans and routine.
Honking horns, flicking fingers,
shouting expletives is an easy way
to relieve the pressure of the
egregious interference
of other people.
But all this poison spitting
only serves to multiply
the already ingrained
and bubbling aggression
of our neutral state.
Only serves to propagate
the innate mode of attack
we enter when exiting our homes.
Only serves to further spread
negativity and suspicion
which eat at us and them,
acid slowly eroding our contentment.

The world is but a loose and flowing garment
and all the small things but motes of dust temporarily caught on the sleeve
easily brushed off or ignored, unworthy of attention or astringent emotion.

Like Water

“Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way around or through it. If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves.

Empty your mind, be formless. Shapeless, like water. If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle and it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now, water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend.”
-Bruce Lee

'Alice' A Recommendation

Alice is an adaptation/re-imagining/sequel of the Lewis Caroll classic Alice's Adventures In Wonderland by Chicago author Christina Henry. Set in an alternate fantasy world upper-class precocious Alice left the prosperous safety of the New City to venture into the Old City for an adventure. She was kidnapped by the Rabbit but eventually escaped only to be found scared and with almost no memory of her capture. The novel opens on Alice ten years after this event in a sanitarium highly medicated and listless. She befriends a fellow patient Hatcher through a mouse hole, after a mysterious fire the two escape into the Old City.

The story is rich, dark, and violent. It takes various plot elements and characters and repurposes them in such a way that they are familiar but presented in a whole new context, in a whole new world. The novel is a weird, extremely compelling, inversion of the source material.

It operates on a couple different levels- horror, fantasy, romance, and a revenge/survivor story. Straight forward but also vivid allegory, there's a lot to enjoy on the surface and a lot to unpack in the depths. Intense and at times brutal it may not be for everyone but Alice will deliver in spades to genre fans and Carroll appreciates alike.

A gripping, fascinating, transportive read. The sequel- Red Queen is due out in July.

Resurface

The past couple weeks I've felt a bit down for no particular reason. The past couple days the blues have kind of faded, again for no particular reason. Like surfacing after a long swim or waking from a protracted slumber.

When you're in a rut its the simple things that get you out. Going outside, talking to people, listening to people, doing those basic things that bring you joy. Curbing expectations, both externally and internally, to mitigate stress. Life is its own ever-changing malleable force that can't be shaped or controlled to correspond with personal rigidity or desire. The ongoing realization of this fact can be difficult. The balance between personal contentment and external circumstance can be hard to find. It's a process.

I've found my job has been giving me some anxiety recently. It's a different situation than I'm use to where projects aren't completed in a day and can languish for days, even weeks waiting to hear back from this person or that person, waiting on this document or that confirmation. It's taken some effort, and continues to, to realign my perspective and adjust to the situation. To provide my best effort and still leave work at work regardless of how many things are left unresolved. I've made progress and its been a relief, allows for feeling a lot better all around.

Taking action is vital for change, whether its physical or psychological or some combination of the two. We cannot dictate our environment but we can give our actions and reactions direction and purpose, we can move through the world with some measure of grace if we choose to.

"This happiness consisted of nothing else but the harmony of the few things around me with my own existence." -Herman Hesse

'Mustang' A Review

Mustang is a French drama about five Turkish sisters contending with the increasing restriction and expectation of their family. The film opens on the five sisters walking home from school and playing(innocently) on the beach with a couple boys. Once they get home their upset grandmother informs them a neighbor has reported their lascivious behavior, their uncle is equally agitated and they plan to limit the girls contact with the outside world(by essentially imprisoning them) and marry them off as soon as possible. The girls rebel against this in various ways and while matches are made for the older girls the younger girls double their efforts to get out from under the familial repression.

All the sisters(Güneş Şensoy as Lale, Doğa Doğuşlu as Nur, Elit İşcan as Ece, Tuğba Sunguroğlu as Selma, İlayda Akdoğan Sonay) give remarkable evocative performances. Natural and emotional with an incredible chemistry between them. It is stunning how good they are given their youth. Nihal Koldaş and Ayberk Pekcan as the grandmother and uncle respectively don't fair as well. Koldaş give a good turn and provides some depth and perspective however she has to battle against the script which is starkly lopsided. Pekcan's job is almost impossible given he is written as a one-dimensional monster.

The plot is somewhat problematic because it is a harsh indictment of non-urban Turkish culture and, although not stated explicitly, Islam and its regressive gender roles. The indictment itself isn't the problem, which on its own is potent, but the film is injected with dramatic cliches(a suicide, familial sexual assault) which hammer home(unnecessarily) how restrictive and horrible the situation is. These elements don't detract from the story or the message but they are distracting and some of the reality created by the five sisters is eroded with these various elements that come across as contrived. The film is effective enough, would even be more so, without these unnecessary plot devices.

Compelling portrayals of five girls battling patriarchal control and familial expectation and becoming women. Socio-politically a bit one-sided.

See It.

'The 5th Wave' A Review

The 5th Wave is an alien invasion movie based on the young adult novel of the same name. Cassie(Chloë Grace Moretz) is a normal Ohio suburbanite until aliens come to Earth. They attack the humans with successive tactics- "waves". After her mother is killed by the Avian flu Cassie, her father, and brother flee to a survivors camp which is then taken over by the US military. The children are packed off to the local Air Force base to become soldiers and the adults are killed. Cassie escapes and resolves to make the 80 mile trek to rescue her brother.

Although there are some great actors in the movie- Ron Livingston as the dad, Liev Schreiber as the authoritarian possibly suspect Colonel, Maria Bello as the tough but wry Sergeant, and Maika Monroe as Ringer the only conscripted teen with any skill- they are criminally under utilized and suffer from the flat predictable script. Moretz as the lead struggles to deliver a coherent character. Her emotional moments are heightened to the point of farce, although she totes an assault rifle around there is no sense she is in fact capable. She is more a composite of YA heroines rather than an actual person, her relationship with her brother, a purported driving force of the story, is flat and unengaging.

The biggest problem with the The 5th Wave isn't the acting, the script, or the production design(serviceable) it is more global- the conceit itself. It is not original but pastiche, a hodgepodge of YA distopian tropes- female protagonist, sibling in danger, love triangle, exploited kids- which are utilized not to tell an interesting and thrilling tale but to fit a prescribed formula in an effort to make money. The desire for profit was so prevalent cogent story telling was neglected.

All this on top of odd anachronistic references like Coldplay's Don't Panic and a Big Fish poster make for an experience more laughable than entertaining.

Not quite so-bad-its-good, just bad.

Don't See It.

Ten Layer Cake

That morning
we hiked
Longs Peak
we three
collegiate potheads
draped in tie-dye
long hair and youth.
Exhausted and proud
we treated ourselves
to a upscale steak luncheon.

The fine dining lodge
was vacant
we three the only patrons
on the specials board
shone a dessert
-certainly a manifestation
of the chefs late-season boredom-
ten layer chocolate cake.
We luxuriated in New York strips
then ordered the titular treat.

O' the size of that decadent dream
a massive wedge
bigger than the dinner plate
on which it was served
the luscious sponge and silky frosting
not only satiated but affirmed,
a satisfaction so potent
it struck some bone-deep harmonic
and for a moment
we three friends were Rocky Mountain kings.


This was long ago,
I can taste it still.

Snow Haiku

A beguiling frost

coats the once vital city-

silent, sleepy, still.

Attrition 2

I've been feeling pretty depleted recently. A result of the weather mostly I think. Always wanting to sleep in, stay in, veg out. It's hard to combat, this prevalent lethargy and low-level apathy. As I've gotten more and more sober time I think I've become more sensitive. I damped down my emotions so long with booze it's still a relatively new experience dealing with them head on.

The first couple years I was sober the big challenge was dealing with people. Not giving in to anger, frustration, or petulance. Not lashing out. Learning to develop a moment of pause before reacting. Curbing or eliminating resentful words, unwarranted accusations, and unproductive attacks. I've made progress but it's something I'm always working on and aware of.

Emotions that come on for no particular reason, with no discernible source, not a direct reaction to something but a response to something more nebulous, maybe nothing whatsoever, that's what I've been struggling with the past couple weeks. When you're happy its not something you have to figure out you just enjoy it but when you're sad that's something you have to work through.

For a long time winter was just a protracted excuse for me to isolate and drink. I didn't feel anything above a low grade desperation because I was anesthetizing myself. As a sober man I've found myself just as susceptible to SAD as anyone else, if not more so. Sometimes I feel its unjust, feeling blue for no reason, other times I'm grateful I have the capacity to feel and process emotions at all. It's not as if its some crippling depression more like a vague sense of unease. It will pass, maybe today, maybe tomorrow, sometime soon.

Days get longer, time rolls on, spring approaches.

Mandala

"I saw that everything, all paths I had been following, all steps I had taken, were leading back to a single point — namely, to the mid-point. It became increasingly plain to me that the mandala is the centre. It is the exponent of all paths. It is the path to the centre, to individuation. I knew that in finding the mandala as an expression of the self I had attained what was for me the ultimate."- C. G. Jung

"Each person’s life is like a mandala – a vast, limitless circle. We stand in the center of our own circle, and everything we see, hear and think forms the mandala of our life. Each person’s life is like a mandala – a vast, limitless circle. We stand in the center of our own circle, and everything we see, hear and think forms the mandala of our life."- Pema Chodron

"The continual stream of new discovery, revelation and inspiration which arises at every moment is the manifestation of our clarity. We should learn to see everyday life as mandala - the luminous fringes of experience which radiate spontaneously from the empty nature of our being. The aspects of our mandala are the day-to-day objects of our life experience moving in the dance or play of the universe. By this symbolism the inner teacher reveals the profound and ultimate significance of being. Therefore we should be natural and spontaneous, accepting and learning from everything. This enables us to see the ironic and amusing side of events that usually irritate us."- Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche

Repetition 2

Sight Unseen, the improv team I perform with at the Annoyance, doesn't have a form per say. The structure we implement is based on scenic mirroring and thematic patterns, fluid and adaptable to whatever opportunities present themselves with the suggestion and first scene.

Typically form is there to give an improv piece some cohesion and underlying support. Focus what can frequently be a series of unrelated content into something with a point of view. Conversely narrative improv is also shied away from, there is a fear that once a piece becomes "too ploty" it loses potency, the performers focus more on the circumstances getting from A to B to C rather than character and relationship. These two guide posts- utilizing an established form and avoiding narrative- are useful when first starting to learn and perform but like many(if not all) improv "rules" they lose usefulness, and in fact become constricting, as you progress.

The way Sight Unseen plays developed organically. We talk briefly after every show and have some very basic goals going into a show. The only formulaic tools we utilize are mirroring and repetition. Last Thursday's show was a good example of when it works well. We developed a theme of familial generations and old age. By simply repeating the set up of an older person being cared for by a younger person we dug into that motif and cut up and down various generational lines showing repeated and divergent modes of behavior. Although the piece didn't have a "plot" it did follow a loose narrative and was more satisfying because of it.

I would alledge simple repetition is more functional than form for discovering and implementing a theme, in bringing about the interconnectivity that so many improv shows strive for. By repeating elements from the first scene or two you're inherently making connections and providing a specific scenic language which is unique to that piece. This also allows the freedom to have the actual improv dictate what the show will be as a whole as opposed to shoehorning in a form that may or may not be appropriate or serviceable for a particular shows inspirations. The other thing to consider regarding form is that a new one hasn't caught on in a long time, people are always coming up with new forms but the ones that are taught and performed are fifteen plus years old. There certainly must be a reason why a new form hasn't caught fire in the past decade, perhaps because form is no longer as relevant within the evolution of the artform.

Regarding reticence of "narrative improv" it is counterintuitive. What are individual improv scenes on the micro level but stories, however truncated or incomplete, and improv shows on the macro level but interactive storytelling, however disjointed. Elements of narrative are intrinsic to the discipline so it makes no sense to limit their application.

There is certainly value to what has gone before but improv, even more so than other artforms, is constantly evolving and our perception and approach should evolve with it.

'Carol' A Review

Carol is a romantic melodrama set in 1952 focused on the love affair between in-progress-divorcee Carol(Cate Blanchett) and impressionable shop girl Therese(Rooney Mara). Carol goes to the department store that Therese works at to buy a Christmas gift for her daughter, she leaves her gloves at the counter which Therese returns. This begins a very restrained friendship/courtship between the two.

Blanchett gives a variant of her Blue Jasmine performance- insufferable upper-class ennui, resplendent with ticks and artificiality. Its as if more time was spent on making Blanchett immaculately groomed than believable. Mara gives a bizarrely restrained performance, so vacant and unresponsive its almost as if her character is on the autism spectrum. There are innumerable silences and alternatively longing and desirous looks and certainly the two leads share a lot of screen time but all of this means little given the characters aren't actually developed. All the men are lumbering over-the-top and covetous and not only do all the women have virtually no agency they can't or don't express their feelings.

All the performances verge on unsympathetic caricature but that could be a fault of the script. It languishes in its restraint and repression so much it lacks emotion. There are so many shots of dirty/fogged windows any intended metaphor is lost in the monotony. The twists and conflict lack any weight because we do not know or care about the characters, their reactions are almost illogical given we know nothing about them and the fact the initial story takes place over a matter of days.

The production design is immaculate- the sets, the cars, the cloths. But most evocative of the time period is the regressive gender roles. On paper the film is a lesbian love story but there is something disquieting about the repeated archetype of the controlling man and the woman without recourse that may serve to reinforce rather than subvert. Although the film espouses to be a story about homosexuality in a time when it was ostracized this is undermined by the pristine heterosexual image of glamour and beauty personified(with great care) by Blanchett and Mara, it is further undermined by their relationship's lack of clarity and emotional articulation. Even their love scene is characterized by heterosexual convention.

In a year with the poignant and playful Tangerine and the less successful albeit contemporary Freeheld among others Carol recalls a time period and societal constraints that deserve no revisit.

Progressive in concept, regressive in execution.

Don't See It.

'Sisters' A Review

Sisters is a comedy about two adult sisters who return to their childhood home one last time before their parents sell the house. Kate(Tina Fey) is an irresponsible single-mom stylist, she is borderline estranged from her daughter, homeless and unemployed. Her sister Maura(Amy Poehler) is her type A counterpart, put-together, overly caring to the detriment of her own enjoyment. Contending with nostalgia and their own issues the sisters decide to throw one last party in their old house before its sold.

Cast against type Fey is fun and unfettered as the wild-child, Poehler plays a more grounded version of Leslie Knope, as always their chemistry is playful and seamless however they never quite reach the point of real electricity, it all feels a bit too safe for real hilarity. The parade of cameos from SNL, 30 Rock, and Parks and Rec alums are all very pleasing but none match the incredible interchange between Poehler and Greta Lee as Hae Won when they struggle to pronounce each others names.

The film is funny, the story serviceable, but it is being pulled in two directions. There is the surprising, and unnecessary, familial drama the bulk of the responsibility falling on two dimensional Madison Davenport as Fey's daughter. What the film really seems to be about is the party and the comedy that stems from it. That portion is great but the forcing of the family drama plot into what is essentially a party movie waters down the comedy and the enjoyment of it.

Funny, pleasant, entertaining enough.

Rent It.

Obits

Obits is a new improv show created by Andel. We use obituaries to inspire scenes, music, and movement in order to honor the dead and give them a chance to, briefly, live again. I'm looking forward to playing with Micah and Andel again, we were on an iO team a couple years ago, and Ryan and Thomas who I've been friends with for a while but never performed with in any regularity.

I haven't rehearsed improv in a long time, it was fun to discuss, dissect, and implement ideas revolving around death and lives viewed through a paragraph-long obit. Respecting the person but still injecting fun and foibles, allowing us room to create.

Wednesdays 10pm at The Annoyance.

Movement Teacher

At the time you were a revelation.
We fresh faced acting hopefuls
were awed by your stubborn optimism,
your physical assurance and fervor
were infectious.
You opened possibilities
to our young impressionable
artistic minds
which we had never considered.
We all came to love you
and hung on your every word
quoted you to each other, the gospel of Paul D.

Under your firm yet cheerful guidance
we studied the principles of Laban
we threw our bodies into
The Eight Efforts-
Indirectly pressing
sustained gliding
directly dabbing
weighted wringing
lightly flicking
quickly slashing-
all the innumerable combinations.
Under your benevolent supervision
our perception broadened
our bodies strengthened
our aesthetic sharpened.
We adored you, we your movement acolytes.
Until that day.

You stopped Caitlin during her solo exploration.
Vented your frustration and disappointment,
your scorn and consternation on her, undeserved.
We saw your positivity and support was but veneer.
Your confidence a fraying rope.
Your fear and discontent acidic.
And we, the recipients of this self-induced maliciousness
were left confused and betrayed.

We all lost something that day.

Top 5 Movies Of 2015

Top 5:
Ex Machina
Mad Max: Fury Road
Room
Tangerine
The Wolfpack

Top 5 Disappointments:
Amy
Chappie
Jurassic World
Kumiko The Treasure Hunter
White God

Most Overrated:
The Martian

Most Underrated:
Goosebumps

Honorable Mentions:
Creed
Duke Of Burgundy
Listen To Me Marlon
Spotlight
What We Do In The Shadows

Worst Movie Of The Year:
Nasty Baby

Performances Of The Year:
Tom Hardy, The Revenant
Samuel L. Jackson, The Hateful Eight
Brie Larson, Room
Kitana Kiki Rodriguez, Tangerine
Lily Tomlin, Grandma

Scenes Of The Year:
Disco dance, Ex Machina
Pet Sounds recording, Love & Mercy
Hospital training, Creed
Funeral sermon, Chi-Raq
Adi is threatened, The Look Of Silence

Divergent Paths

Time, relentless, marches on and people's paths entwined for a while diverge, maybe later to rejoin, maybe not.

The Night Shift, our former Playground team, has been retired for a year. We've met almost once a month since for a Sunday potluck. There's a lot of history between us- five years, a lot of shows, and some big life events. Craig is leaving to go back to school in Arkansas in a week so we got together for a low-key send off. As I've gotten older these type of farewells have become more common. Lives take different twists and turns, adulthood necessitates big changes, some geographical, some personal.

I'll miss Craig, he's been a great friend and a wonderful collaborator. But there is an odd affirmation when people cut their own path then take it. He may come back, he may not, whose to say what the future will hold, but it seems like the right choice for him and that's not something to regret.

'The Revenant' A Review

The Revenant is a biographical western based on the life of frontier trapper Hugh Glass(Leonardo DiCaprio). The year is 1823 and a group of hunters and trappers, under the leadership of Captain Henry(Domhnall Gleeson) the representative for the Rocky Mountain Fur Company, are in the Native American occupied wilderness amassing animal pelts. At the beginning of the film the group is attacked by a faction of the Arikara tribe and only a fraction of the men escape in a boat. Glass the appointed scout of the expedition advises the safest way out of the hostile territories is a long journey on land. One of the trappers John Fitzgerald(Tom Hardy) is against this idea and becomes increasingly more recalcitrant and antagonistic as the journey progresses. Matters are complicated when Glass is left immobile after a bear attack.

In the titular role DiCaprio gives a great if somewhat narrow performance. The physical demands he meets and exceeds however the film does not call for a lot of emotional depth or dimension. He portrays the single-minded determination of the character with compelling tenacity but there is no real sense of his internal workings. His eating raw bison liver and submerging himself in freezing water is impressive, these feats may be difficult, they are not unique to Dicaprio. Any actor could physically do the same action and have the same result. By comparison Hardy gives the significantly more interesting performance. Complex, layered, and energetic. We can infer a lot about him and his past, he is the antagonist but he is not a clear cut villain. We can follow the logic of his actions, the compromises, the desires. Ultimately Hardy and his character are more complete, more human, than the wraith like portrayal of DiCaprio.

Visually the film is almost without peer. Gorgeous landscapes, breath-taking natural lighting, an incredible use of depth and scope, evocative imagery, on and on. The major flaw in the film is its ending. After a spectacular journey the conclusion is muddled, it is unclear what the intention behind it is, what, if anything, is the point. It's a stumble rather than a confident finish.

Transportive imagery, a phenomenal journey with gripping performances, an ellipses of an ending.

See It.

'Anomalisa' A Review

Anomalisa is a stop-motion drama from writer/co-director Charlie Kaufman. Michael Stone(David Thewlis) is a husband, father, and the best-selling author of customer service handbook How May I Help You Help Them?. The film opens with Michael on his way to speak at a conference in Cincinnati crippled by depression. This manifests itself in every other person looking the same and voiced by the same actor(Tom Noonan). After Michael has a series of banal/awkward/negative interactions he hears a woman's voice at his hotel who he rushes out to meet. Lisa(Jennifer Jason Leigh) is an attendant at the conference Michael will be speaking and they spend the night together.

Thewlis as the lead gives a good performance, navigating the different levels of manic with alacrity but fails(or is prevented from) breaking out of the characters pervasive desperation. Leigh is the clear standout, providing much needed vulnerability, emotion, and dimension. Noonan as every other character is impressive and is the primary reason for the films success in creating its mood of crushing day-to-day mediocrity.

The stop-motion animation is stunning, the ability of the puppets to evoke humanity incredible. Michael's dream sequence is especially effecting but ultimately the film offers little comment on its protagonist's condition other than an apathetic finality. There is no hope, no change, no transformation. Not to say all movies need these things but in this case, given the ending which the film has, what is the story's purpose, what function does it serve- seemingly none. It is more a meditation on existential futility rather than any kind of celebration or examination of the human condition or romance. Because of this it offers no closure and little fulfillment.

Eerily beautiful, a soulful vocal performance from Jennifer Jason Leigh, but lacking hope and resolution.

Rent It.

Etiquette

Gone are the days
of please and thank yous
how's your days
hand shakes
opened doors
and completed chores.
Face­-to-­face has become passé.
There's a different set of pleasantries
in this our 21st century.

Now we feel put upon
when asked to put away our phones.
If, at an intimate dinner,
a friend were to chastise us
for checking Facebook or Instagram
we would be incensed.
For the real is nothing
when compared to voyeuristic viewing
of others documenting doing.

Our marvelous and modern age
is filled with stuff.
But for all the screens
the clicks and likes
the hits and pics
it is a hollow distraction,
no substitute for human interaction.
Connection is not made with wires
but hand to hand, heart to heart-
an expression of desire.

Graffiti 190

"You make 'em, I amuse 'em." -Dr. Seuss

"The only way to amuse some people is to slip and fall on an icy pavement." -E. W. Howe

"What is important, I think, is to reach as many people as you can and do it as well as you can. Reach them and inspire them or amuse them, or maybe in some odd moments help them to discover something they hadn't thought of before." -Max von Sydow

No Exit

“So this is hell. I'd never have believed it. You remember all we were told about the torture-chambers, the fire and brimstone, the "burning marl." Old wives' tales! There's no need for red-hot pokers. Hell is—other people!”

“As for me, I am mean: that means that I need the suffering of others to exist. A flame. A flame in their hearts. When I am all alone, I am extinguished.”

“I think of death only with tranquility, as an end. I refuse to let death hamper life. Death must enter life only to define it.”

“There were days when you peered into yourself, into the secret places of your heart, and what you saw there made you faint with horror. And then, next day, you didn't know what to make of it,you couldn't interpret the horror you had glimpsed the day before. Yes, you know what evil costs.”

― Jean-Paul Sartre, No Exit

Thinking Time

Winter, mild though it is, has taken root. No more nice days for a while. No more sunlit happy smiles. Bring on months of hunched shoulders. Of shivers and itchy noses. Where things turn inward. A battle with the blues.

This season has been somewhat of a reprieve from past severity but even so it is a trial to trudge and shuffle through these cold days with a will. To grapple with the aged cunning seasonal affect. Bowed under the weight of cloudy sunless skies. One step, then another. One day, then the next.

"You can't get too much winter in the winter." -Robert Frost

Gestation

I just finished reading On Writing by Stephen King, a Christmas present from my sister, it's part memoir part writing how-to. He doesn't really talk about where his ideas come from(virtually impossible for any creative person) but he does make a distinction as to how they come. Sometimes fully formed, sometimes in bits and pieces that have to be teased out.

This is something I've experienced in my own work, sometimes ideas for a poem, piece, or play come already ripe which is great. All in a rush and all you have to do is give them form. Other times, and for me this is more typical, it starts with a relatively nebulous concept and as I mull it over, let it incubate, it gains momentum, sophistication and form. A lot of the work is done in my head so that when I sit down to write it I have an idea that has more of a structure, it makes it a lot easier to actually write the thing when I have a firm understanding of its shape. This waiting period is important, instead of rushing to the computer or the pad with the start of an idea then forcing my way through it I let it percolate for a while until I have a clear sense of what it will be, what I'm trying to say. Like a whittler with a promising piece of wood who stares at it until the figurine hidden inside is revealed, only then does he begin carving.

King also relates a piece of advice he received from one of his early editors- "The book is boss." Meaning the idea not the artist dictates what it will be. His example is a short story idea which, once he began writing, turned into a novel. He could have forced it but the story wanted to be, was more appropriate as, called for the additional length and scope of a novel. Once you begin work on a project it will typically reveal its most suitable form. Something you start as a story may be better as a play, a poem more potent as an essay.

The third thing that struck me on this read that King suggests is, after completing a project, to get some distance from it. Obviously in his case he's talking about the novel, he says put it in a drawer and don't look at it for six weeks. I don't think the time frame is necessarily applicable to shorter works but the waiting is. Let the essay/sketch/poem/story sit there for a while after completion- a couple days, maybe a week. After getting some time away from the thing you created it becomes less dear. You're able to see it clearly, smooth the rough edges, sharpen and shape. Distill it.

On Writing has a lot of practical advice for novel writers, writers in general, and artists of any discipline. The three big points he makes are: consume a lot, create a lot, and develop your own process.

'Bone Tomahawk' A Review

Bone Tomahawk is a horror/western set in the 1890's about two people kidnapped by a group of troglodyte cannibals and the four men who go to rescue them. The movie opens on two bandits who desecrate the aforementioned troglodyte cannibals burial ground, one of them is killed and one escapes. The TC's follow the surviving bandit to near by town Bright Hope where they kill a citizen and kidnap two others. The sheriff(Kurt Russell) along with his aged deputy(Richard Jenkins), local playboy gunslinger(Matthew Fox), and hobbled cowboy(Patrick Wilson) set off in pursuit.

Russell gives a confident authentic performance, pleasing to see him in a lead role after a string of supporting parts, he's one of those actors that makes you comfortable whenever he is on screen. As he's aged he hasn't lost any of his rakish charm but has gained a certain amount of gravitas. Jenkins gives a great turn as the loyal somewhat persnickety deputy with incredible chemistry with Russell. Fox is passable as the conceited-killer-fop but lacks depth. Wilson struggles with his portrayal as much as the literal crutch he uses, he flounders as the determined wife-rescuer.

The tone of Bone Tomahawk is odd, not horror/western hybrid but 3/4 western 1/4 horror, because it is does not actually meld the two genres it would have been better served to pick one or the other, as it is it feels like two incomplete ideas. Visually the film is sloppy, with a dullness that makes it look artificial, and periodic handheld shots which make it seem amateurish. Made even more bizarre by the star power within the frame. The graphic violence in the final part of the movie is certainly well done but comes out of no where and ultimately has no real meaning.

Inconsistent, underdeveloped, and confused.

Don't See It.

A Rebuff From The Film Gods

As I ascended
the escalators
at the Landmark
Century
Cathedral
I was confronted
with an uncommon feature-
A line!
My assumption-
(which proved unsound)
Star Wars was the culprit
But no!
The group of twelve
burly bearded gay men
(Bears)
in front of me
bought the last tickets
for my intended screening
(Carol)
my only unseen alternative
was Eddie Redmayne's
breathy mincing
(The Danish Girl)
which seemed
unappealing unto
blaspheme.
So.
I made my long
winding way
down the circuitous
low grade ramps
onto the indifferent streets.
Devoid of celluloid to worship.