The strongest portion of this movie can be credited to the caliber of acting in it. Starting with leads Michael Sheen (David Frost) and Frank Langella (Nixon). Though Sam Rockwell, Oliver Plat, Kevin Bacon and Matthew Macfadyen also turn in excellent work. Sadly I'd say large portions of the movie, especially between the interview segments, tend to drag. And outside that final interview the story doesn't really have any natural drama or gravitas to it...
So Dad dies, family gathers, Dad's boyfriend attempts to blackmail sons so that Dad is kept in the closet, comedy ensues. Even allowing that I'm an easy mark for anything with Peter Dinklage, a very enjoyable and funny movie. Plus drugged out Alan Tudyk...
The Goon in Chinatown and the Mystery of Mr. Wicker by Eric Powell, with colors by Dave Stewart
The Goon is normally a a dark and crude humor title that mash-ups horror, noir and pulp. For the "Chinatown/Mr.Wicker" story Powell basically drops the humor. As the first page says, "This Ain't Funny". The Goon is a crime boss in a world with zombies, demons and other monsters. He maintains his hold on his territory by being the meanest, toughest bastard around. Here we get two similar points in his life when he questions how he got there. The first is a flash back to The Goon re-encountering his childhood love Bella. The second deals with the incursion of a would be rival, the mysterious Mr. Wicker...
Its hard to adequately describe the pathos of the doomed relationship between Bella and The Goon. A series of full-page panels after the two part ways, where The Goon simply stares at his own brutish face and is left devastated, is emotionally riveting. As is The Goon's rage-fueled, blood-soaked killing spree thru a gang of encroaching Chinese...
I'll admit that Powell's normal run doesn't work for me. The few times I've looked it over the humor to it left me cold. But here, stripped of any attempt to be funny, Eric Powell creates a dark masterpiece...
Thats a lot of books. From the Notebooks of Dr. Brain back in February still ranks as the worst of them. Favorite writer I started this year would probably be Andrew Vachss, part of my exploring the noir/pulp genres in books and film. Most interesting was probably Valente's Palimpset with its striking imagery and dream-world setting...
And the final list of books read for 2009. Including at least one I didn't finish but not including things like comics trades or game rule books...
Dec 1st: Andrew Vachss - Everybody Pays: Another short story collection from Vachss. This one has larger sections on Cross and on the Underground scifi setting I think...
Dec 2nd: Charlaine Harris - Grave Secret: I'm not sure if this is the last Harper Connelly book, but it works as a finale for the series. The focus is on people's reactions to Harper and her stepbrother's relationship and the resolution on what happened to her missing younger sister...
Christopher Moore - Fool: Moore's explicitly vulgar, strikingly profane and exceptionally humorous parody (or is it a satire? I'm not sure how to tell the difference) of the classic King Lear...
Dec 4th: Diane Duane - The Wizard's Dilemma: It took me a while to start in on the new Young Wizards books. To be fair, the same could be said of Duane. This story has probably one of the best takes on "magic vs. cancer" or Why Can't I Just Magic Them Better?
Dec 5th: Chuck Palahniuk - Pygmy: I think the point when the narrator's way of reporting back in both broken and overly detailed English goes from interesting to fucking annoying is at about twenty pages in. Also, making your "hero" a rapist in the early chapters didn't really work as a way to keep me reading the damn book. I probably should have started with Fight Club or something...
Dec 6th: Virginia DeMarce - 1635: The Tangled Web: After reading this solo collection of DeMarce's Ring of Fire fiction, I have to say that she works better without Flint. The two of them seem to bring each other's flaws more to the forefront...
Kevin Anderson - Hidden Empire: I'd actually forgotten I'd grabbed this trilogy from the thrift store and tried to read it. Which says something about how dull I found it. Good high concepts for the setting, but just bored me utterly. Luckily I paid a buck for all three books...
Dec 8th: John Ringo - There Will Be Dragons: I think S.M. Stirling and Ringo had a bet about writing a series where Rennies and SCA enthusiasts have to save the world. To be fair, Ringo's McGuffin works better than Stirling's. And thats with Stirling not having revealed his yet...
Robert Parker - Pastime: I think the most notable part of this 18th Spenser book is that its where he and Susan get their dog. The rest of the book is enjoyable but doesn't have much to make it stand out from the rest of the ongoing series...
Dec 9th: Ringo - Emerald Sea: Also, Mr. Ringo you need a ding upside the head for sock-puppeting a "global warming is just hysteria" speech from someone whose authority on the subject comes from being a military historian from thousands of years in the future. Seriously leave out the digs at current events and get back to the action...
Dec 10th: Neil Gaiman - Smoke & Mirrors: I've read this Gaiman short story collection before, but somehow I'd missed adding it to my library until now...
Kate Elliott - Traitor's Gate: The last book to the Crossroads Trilogy. Its sad when a heroic character shows themselves to be less than heroic. But happily I get to see the comeuppance on the leaders of the ravaging Star Army. Sweet, sweet comeuppance...
Dec 12th: Terry Pratchett - Unseen Academicals: I have to say, this latest Discworld novel reads better the 2nd time around...
Dec 13th: John Scalzi - Old Man's War: While an more than enjoyable scifi miltech book, I do wish Scalzi had done more to follow up on some of the concepts he sets up...
Dec 14th: Scalzi - The Last Colony: Which, I'll admit, he manages to do more with in this third book for the series...
Dec 16th: Ringo - Against the Tide: Another generally enjoyable bit of far-future sword&sorcery military epic-ness from Ringo...
Dec 18th: Cherie Priest - Boneshaker: A very enjoyable mash-up of steampunk & zombie survival set in 19th century Seattle...
Dec 19th: Neal Asher - Prador Moon: 1st book of Asher's Polity series. With the start of the war between the far-future human/AI Polity & the vicious crab-like Prador...
Dec 20th: George R.R. Martin (ed) - Busted Flush: Re-reading the second in the latest continuation Wild Cards anthology after I picked up my own copy...
Dec 21st: Parker - The Professional: The only thing that bothers me about this latest Spenser book is the title. Who exactly is it supposed to be referring to? Its not Spenser. Its not the blackmailer he's hired to track down and discourage. Maybe its Hawk? Hawk is in the book...
Dec 23rd: Joel Rosenberg - D'Shai & Hour of the Octopus: I really wish Rosenberg would revisit this mystery series and it's vaguely Asian setting...
Dec 28th: Eric Flint (ed) - Grantville Gazette: Just tiding myself over until the next book in the Ring of Fire comes out or I break down and start buying the online editions of the Gazettes...
Dec 31st: Jasper Fforde - Shades of Grey: Ending the year and the decade with Fforde's new series. I like that, unlike the Thursday Next books, there seems to be some kind of future explanation for the weirdness of the setting. The book's ending is also much darker than his other two series...
1. Cats are watching you and me and everyone. For mysterious reasons...
2. Membership in the Brotherhood of No Pants is most desirable...
3. The secret Master of the Secret Conspiracy is the King of Cats. Probably part of why all those cats are watching everyone...
4. When it comes to battle no Muppet may match against the savagery of Animal!
5. Superman should fight the Ghost of Teddy Roosevelt / Professor Stephen Hawking / High Taxes / Grant Morrison / a tag-team of Jesus and the Devil. Probably in some kind of Last Man Standing-Gauntlet type match...
6. The majority believe that to become President you have to win the Top Secret Battle of the Bands...
7. People are most thankful for family being far away and/or their fuzzy lumps...
8. The best animal-based rivalry is Cat V. Mouse
9. People think the worst ideas for holiday specials would be either Charlie Brown's SAD Related Suicide or I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus & Then Daddy Shot Them Both...
10. A 5-way tie? Are you people trying to drive me Mad?
BONUS: What did I learn from last week's "poll"? NOTHING! NOTHING AT ALL!!!
That was fun. Downey Jr. and Law are both excellent as Holmes and Watson. McAdams is very nice as the vastly expanded Irene Adler. The biggest weakness is the bad guy Lord Blackwood. The actor is..ok. Nothing great. And his master plot is overly-complicated and fairly daft. But it does allow for awesome Holmes struttery as he breaks down how everything works...
Got Shades of Grey the new Jasper Fforde book a week early, so that was a pleasant surprise. Even if the UPS guy did wake me up banging on the front door...
Phonogram: Rue Britannia story by Kieron Gillen, art by Jamie McKelvie
Yeah I know its Monday. But lets forget my inability to do something as simple as be on time with a weekly project. Let us instead turn our eyes to England. And to that musical phenomenon known as britpop. Confused? That is because you're like me in that you have no fucking clue what britpop is or was (apparently Oasis and Blur would be some of the more mainstream representatives). But for some people it was a big deal...
Like David Kohl, phonomancer. That is a person who uses music and its culture as magic. Not making music, but listening to it. Being involved in its fandom. Taking a loosely defined genre and using it to form a sub-culture. Magic from that...
Kohl's more than a bit of an arrogant prick and supremely self-involved. So of course he's been tasked by the female divinity The Goddess to rescue an aspect of herself. Brittania, the avatar of britpop. And to do so she gives him The Curse until he's done. After that things go very metaphorical and symbolical and shit until Kohl saves reality. Or at least the bit that focuses on him...
Phonogram isn't for everyone. And who its for isn't apparent until they read it. Or try. Its not the music. I loved the series and as may be guessed I'm clueless to the majority of the music referenced in it. To some its self-indulgent and/or pretentious. And that isn't any inaccurate description. But for some it'll catch hold and dig deep. So go ahead and give it a spin and find out which you are...
At the Moms for pre-work Christmas Eve Family Dinner. Something like a mazillion different choices for dinner. Ham, turkey enchiladas, shrimps, some kind of beef. Also there are going to be ELEVEN kids running around eventually. My Uncle Tim's 3, my brother's 2, my step-sisters have 6 between them. Lots of kids...
So a happy holidays and merry christmas to ya'll...