I saw Balls of Fury last night at the Drafthouse. It was fun - I laughed through most of it, though it lagged a bit in the 3rd quarter. I wish they had done more with George Lopez - he was very funny with what he had to work with.
Sunday, I saw The Bourne Ultimatum. It is one of the most non-stop movies I’ve ever seen. There are no slow moving moments in this film until a brief moment towards the end. The action is well staged, there are great twists, turns, and surprises. My only critique would be that I could have used a little less shaky-cam in the action sequences. I think I noticed maybe two shots in the film that may have used a tripod. Everything else, including dialog was shot hand-held. I thought it was really effective in the dialog scenes, but less so in the action sequences where it was difficult at times to comprehend what was happening. Overall, I really enjoyed it.
This just in from London: Safe Bedside Table
Looks like a reasonable way to defend the home in Britain. In Texas, we have other ways.
I saw Stardust this weekend and enjoyed it very much. It is the sort of sweet natured fairy tale that The Princess Bride was, but isn’t very similar other than being in a fantasy setting.
The movie is changed quite a bit from the book, but not in any ways that I found offensive. The changes are either essential compression for movie purposes or are in with the spirit of the book (Robert DeNiro’s Captain Shakespeare is one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen him do). Stardust moves along at a nice pace. You get a good feel for the characters and there aren’t unnecessary lulls in the plotting.
I loved many of little details in the film: the goat turned into a man, Captain Shakespeare’s crew, the choir of ghostly brothers observing and commenting on the story.
Roger Ebert was very wrong in his review. The plot isn’t overly contrived and the deus ex machina that he accuses the film of is part of the nature of a fairy tale. Also, other reviewers who have pointed out violence in the film are being overly sensitive. In comparison, the Princess Bride was a more violent film.
Stardust is a well-made romantic fairy tale adventure. I recommend it for anyone who wants to enjoy a couple of hours smiling through a fun story.
There’s a little bit of a trail to follow here, but I came across the web site Baptists for Brownback via a post on Bible Versus linked to by the Real Live Preacher. Oh the paths that the Internet leads you on.
This site reads like something you might find on the Onion, but it appears to be the honest opinions of the writers [Update - many friends think this is a humor site - please let it be so!]. Regardless, it is some of the funniest stuff I’ve read online in a long time. The best article is the one which gave me the title of this post.
Update: Some kilt-wearing men might be heterosexual after all
Some of the comments on the post (and on the initial post) have really funny quotes as well such as:
When you put on a kilt you are stepping out of God’s laws. You might just as well wear wizard robes and read Henry (sic) Potter.
My only fear is that they’ll read this post and decide that I belong on their list of “People Who are Probably Going To Hell”. I’ll just have to risk it.
Another Update:
Most importantly, I forgot to add a link here to my favorite kilt wearing buddy.
Saturday night, Virgie and I went up to Gruene Hall in New Braunfels to listen to one of my all-time favorite bands, Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers. The Mother Truckers opened the show and were excellent! Great high energy country/roots-rock/Americana music. Their guitar player in particular was outstanding - lightning quick solos, with precision, taste, and cool licks.
The Peacemakers put on a fantastic show also. Every time I’ve seen them, I’m amazed at how much energy they put into the performance, how much they appreciate their fans, and how much fun they have playing their songs.
Roger was wearing that hat again. I really need to find where I can acquire one. Someone in the crowd brought this hilarious viking inspired hat out and Roger added it on to his gigantic sombrero. 
Photo by Anton.
Anton took some cool photos that you can check out in his Flickr stream.
If you ever have an opportunity to see the Peacemakers - don’t pass it up. It’ll be one of the best shows you’ve ever seen!
