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Stuff + nonsense. Updated daily. So far. Pretty much. Overwrought by Scott Knaster.
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Friday, May 16, 2003
The Matrix Reloaded
If Morpheus were asked to review The Matrix Reloaded (the Morpheus of this movie, not the original), he might say something like "It is as good a movie as it is, because that is what it is supposed to be." Well, it didn't suck, and it's not stunning or genre-defining. This time, the element of surprise provided by all the goodies in the original movie is lost, and really, that was bound to happen. The fights, explosions, flying, and other special effects are fun to watch, but they sometimes go on too long. The philosophizing is endless and devoid of the minimalist pop magic and mysticism the first movie provided. Some of the dialog is bad, bad, bad. Councilors pontificate, Morpheus makes an embarrassing speech in Zion, and the movie absolutely screeches to a halt during a ponderous scene with the Matrix's architect. During that scene, I watched people in the theater shift in their seats and check their watches. There's too much going on here, too many little subplots. Few of these pay off, as they're apparently just setups for The Matrix Revolutions. They had too much money, spent too much time trying to live up to expectations. The Matrix was clever and original, but now it's a franchise. The non-ending is a title reading "TO BE CONCLUDED", but even without that predictable disappointment, the movie is good but unsatisfying. It's "merely" a really good action/science-fiction blockbuster with awesome effects, which isn't really so bad, but the experience doesn't come close to The Matrix. This LA Times review comes pretty close to describing how I feel.
Wednesday, May 14, 2003
There is no spoon
Gonna watch The Matrix tonight with friends: the original, in preparation for seeing Matrix Reloaded tomorrow night.Unfortunately, no one can be told what the Matrix is. You have to see it for yourself.Geeks rule!
Weird play in Giants-Expos game
It was a dark and windy night at Pacific Bell Park. With bases loaded and one out, Barry Bonds popped up between the mound and home. The umpires immediately and clearly called the infield fly rule, rendering Bonds out. Three Expos tracked the wind-blown popup, which eventually fell untouched on the infield. Then, brain cramps broke out all around. Baserunner Neifi Perez was about halfway home from third base, trying to figure out what to do, when the genius Expos decided to pick up the ball and step on home for a force out. Of course, with the batter out on the infield fly, there was no force. As the 'spos congratulated themselves for this difficult feat of baseballing, Perez hilariously and nonchalantly snuck in behind them, puffed his cheeks as if in resignation, then stuck his foot on the plate, looking at the umpire for confirmation that he had scored. The umpire stayed with the play all the way and made the "safe" call. The Expos briefly argued, but they were wrong: on an infield fly, runners can advance, as Perez did. If the Expos had simply taken a few steps and tagged Perez, he would have been out. This one goes in my mental collection of weird baseball plays, along with the infield fly triple play and other fun.
RIAA apologizes for erroneous letters
The RIAA sent cease-and-desist letters to folks who apparently were doing nothing wrong. It later apologized for the letters.
Tuesday, May 13, 2003
Ronald McDonald captures kid
Here is the story of a 4-year-old kid who climbed up on a statue of Ronald McDonald and got his head stuck between Ronald's legs. The interesting thing about the story is the unstated subtext of the irresponsible parent, and a part of the story that seems to have vanished. Throughout the story, the reporter's writing paints the parent as taking no responsibility for what happened. In the printed version, I remember reading that the reporter asked the parent point-blank whether he was responsible at all, and he said no. Curiously, this exchange is missing from the web version. That's too bad, because it was the best part of the story, as the reporter smelled what the parent was saying and went in for the kill. I e-mailed the reporter to ask why they edited that part out on the web. I'll let you know what he says.
Monday, May 12, 2003
Carol Channing gets married
This is pretty cool: 82-year-old Carol Channing married her junior high school sweetheart, Harry Kullijian, over the weekend. They hadn't seen each other for decades until earlier this year when a friend of Harry's noticed that Carol had mentioned him in her autobiography. At the time, Harry said "I thought she was dead."
