Author: BillSaysThis

Today’s movie: Stickmen

From New Zealand, 2001’s Stickmen shows that no budget and no access to fancy digital effects doesn’t mean no movie. Like many an independent movie, it’s quite good even though it wasn’t made in Hollywood.

The central plot revolves around pub pool and a high stakes tournament sponsored by the local mobster. We know who Daddy is because he owns the escort service and because he cuts people up when they don’t repay the loans he’s made them. And Daddy isn’t too happy when Jack, Wayne, and Thomas, our heroes, turn out to be quite the players after the three are assigned long odds in the tournament.

In the middle of the movie, the two main female characters Karen and Sara are talking in a bar. Karen tells a story about a man and says, “The moral of the story is that men are stupid.” Sara responds, “That’s the moral to a million stories.” I suppose they’re right, though it was the accents that made it sound so hot. These two are quite integral to the ending, in a surprising way.

I was quite surprised to find that this is the first film Hamish Rothwell directed and the first screenplay Nick Ward wrote, not to mention the first starring/significant roles for most of the cast. The script has very few obvious flaws, coincidences, or bad choices–as I wrote this sentence I checked IMDB and found out, sure enough, that it won a bunch of the top prizes at the 2001 New Zealand Film and TV Awards: Scott Wills (as Wayne) for Best Actor, Ward for Best Screenplay, Rothwell for Best Director, and Luanne Gordon (as the honest prostitute Lulu) for Best Supporting Actress in her first feature film

According to the film’s website, Stickmen (the name under which our boys team for the tournament), was one of the half dozen most profitable movies made in NZ in the past 20 years, as well as one of the first NZ-produced films to merit a DVD release.

Definitely recommended, cheers for Tivo!

Elvis is in the building

Of course we’re all very sad that David Letterman is stuck at home recovering from shingles but Elvis Costello was really good subbing for him last night. Very funny, topical monologue, showing that good writers can make anyone with a little smooth funny, and a terrific vamp on Allison with the lyrics changed to be “I Want to Be a Talkshow Host.” Catrell, strapless dress, va-va-va-voom! Mitch Hedberg: stoner? Fer sure, dude! Then, when Elvis and the Imposters played, what else but my favorite Power Pop tune ever, (What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding, total happiness.

Maybe I’m too old school but I think the original version of Feelin’ Groovy is a lot better than the new recording done for the Gap commercial.

Another doofus politician

Should a congressperson resign after saying things that are out and out anti-Semitic? “If it were not for the strong support of the Jewish community for this war with Iraq, we would not be doing this. The leaders of the Jewish community are influential enough that they could change the direction of where this is going, and I think they should.” According to Marc Fisher, writing in the Washington Post, Sorry, Mr. Moran, You’re Not Fit For Public Office, the answer is yes. Apparently this is not his first really outrageous act. Get this moron out of our government!

TV addicts: a mailing list just for you

For the last couple of months I’ve been subscribed to Tom Heald’s Remote Patrol. I get it as a daily newsletter but you can also read it on TV Barn or subscribe to the RSS feed. Oddly, even though the thing features Tom Heald’s name in the title, it seems to be written by Jon Delfin.

Regardless of who does the writing, I like it. The newsletter/column is snarky and wacky, just the way I would do it. For example, sampling from today’s installment:

  • “Mysteries of Noah’s Flood” (9 p.m., TLC) reveals that Ham just left the faucet on.
  • A Roman catapult is created by a team on “Building the Impossible” (10 p.m., TLC), and then snuck into Iraq to try to convince France to approve the current U.N. resolution.
  • “Wild Kingdom” (8 p.m., Animal Planet) suggests that meerkats aren’t as sarcastic as Nathan Lane made them out to be in “The Lion King.”

If you watch more than two hours of TV a day and can spare three minutes for a bit of humor, read this regularly.

Gibson’s Passion: Is a storm coming?

I received an excited email, apparently circulating widely in the Jewish community, worked up about a film Mel Gibson is directing and producing called The Passion. The primary concern of the email’s author is that this film portrays the Jews (of his time) as responsible for Jesus’ death. No small accusation since in the past this canard was responsible for centuries of oppression and murder of my people.

But since no one who knows what the film shows just yet is talking, the furor is a little ahead of itself. All Gibson will say in interviews is that his film is accurate according to what’s in the Bible. He’s a deeply religious man, but a Catholic who worships at his own church, separate from the official hierarchy. Apparently he (and his family) never accepted the changes of Vatican II and went their own way. One of the key elements of that monumental change in the Church was an official acknowledgement that Jews, as a group, were not responsible for killing Jesus.

Get a sampling:

From the Wall Street Journal: The Greatest Story, Newly Told

Weblogger 1: Yourish in response to

Weblogger 2: Cut on the Bias

All launched by the New York Times: Is the Pope Catholic…Enough?

and an LA Rabbi: LA Rabbi Asks Mel Gibson to Reconsider Jesus Film.

If the film, which uses dialog in Aramaic, Latin, and Hebrew but no English (and no subtitles), really does try and turn the clock back, this will be a bad thing at a bad time.

Entertainment, violence, and consequences

For awhile now I’ve been wondering about the appeal of ultra-violent video games, especially since I found that one of my closest friends loves nother better than a few hours of going toe to toe with Quake 2. So many of the bestselling games are wrapped up in violence, though my cursory attention has also noted a few that offer sexual titillation as well–I’ve really been confused about where the out and out pornographic games are hiding, to be frank–that I wonder about the appeal of such a high level of violence.

We do get fairly explicit violent movies and TV shows, and rap music indulges quite a bit of it too, but nowhere near the level of games like Grand Theft Auto, Halo, or Quake. Why is this difference so substantial? I played Quake a few times at my friend’s house but to me there is no thrill in shooting at his character or playing in team mode and shooting monsters the game serves up. Violence is, to me, in nearly any form a terrible and undesirable thing. Necessary at times to defend oneself but always unfortunate. So why do so many people get such a thrill from the game version.

And can the players ultimately separate the pretend from their reality or will it seep through in the long run? I was not surprised at all to read this morning’s paper and see that a study has been released correlating quantity of violence seen on television with violent behavior. The researchers interviewed hundreds of children ages six to ten, waited 15 years or more for them to grow up, and went back and examined their behavior. The key findings:

“Men who really liked such television shows as children were much more likely to have pushed, grabbed or shoved their spouses, shoved someone who insulted them, been ticketed for speeding or convicted of another crime.

Women who enjoyed violent shows, including Charlie’s Angels, were four times more likely to have thrown something at their husbands, shoved or punched someone else, or been caught speeding or committing another crime.”

So what are we letting ourselves in for in another decade or two when today’s six to ten year olds grow up and the destruction they craved and learned in Resident Evil and Master of Orion seeps into adult behavior?

I hope you’re not wasting lifespan watching Oliver Beene. This is pathetic and only on my screen because I’m surfing the web and too lazy to get up. But wasn’t the Krusty for Congress Simpsons excellent?

Steve J comes up with the words I’ve been pondering the last three or four days. Dave often has interesting linkage but way too often his commentary is far too self-serving and obviously absurd.

Update, 3/9: Dave responds today to Steve, criticizes Steve for not getting his facts straight (though I think many would disagree with this assessment), and then proceeds to get his own facts wrong. Silly Dave!

Two Old Notes

A 5000 Lire note, cinquemila, sits on my desk

A 1000 Lire note, mille, rests atop it

Reminding me of the trip to Sicily and Sorrento

I took not too long ago.

But these notes are no longer legal tender,

No longer worth the few American pennies I

Exchanged for them at the hotel desk,

Replaced by the latest Euro fashion.

Consider that I could easily have bought an

Espresso and canoli with them instead of bringing

Them home, was that the right choice?

The past is gone and cannot be changed.

But then what is the worth of them as a reminder to me

Of the wonderful time I spent with my father

Of the two weeks in a new place and a different culture

Of the ways in which my eyes were opened?

I know I would not trade them for a couple of shiny Euros

I would rather have them right here to see, to touch

The portraits of Montessori and Bellini looking to the distance

The green and tan and blue, the blue and magenta of two old notes.