Friday, November 26, 2004

Alexander the Bomb. Ollie Stone's new movie is getting terrible reviews -- "puerile" "uninspired, repetitious, tedious" "a 178-minute-long wall hanging" and "a bad movie of truly epic proportion." I like Stephen Hunter's review best:
[Stone's] Alexander, as expressed through the weepy histrionics of Colin Farrell, is more like a desperate housewife than a soldier. He's always crying, his voice trembles, his eyes fill with tears. He's much less interesting, except as a basket case, than Richard Burton's Alexander of far less enlightened times -- 1956 -- in Robert Rossen's "Alexander the Great." Burton got Alexander's dissipation, but also his martial spirit; this was, after all, one of the great light-cavalry commanders of all time and a general who fought by leading his troops, sword in hand, not directing them from some safe hill. But in this one you think: Teri Hatcher could kick this twerp's butt.

* * *

Then there's Angelina Jolie as Mom. Really, words fail me here. But let's try: Give this young woman the hands-down award for best impression of Bela Lugosi while hampered by a 38-inch bust line. Though everyone else in the picture speaks in some variation of a British accent, poor Jolie has been given the Transylvanian throat-sucker's throaty, sibilant vowels, as well as a wardrobe of snakes.
The whole review is witty and a work of art which should be read. [More: Read Mr. Bradley's take as well.]

Nevertheless, Alexander, the subject, should not be written off, even if Stone's flick is.

Stephen Pressfield has just released a novel of Alexander, The Virtues of War. Based on my read of one his prior novels, Gates of Fire, a novel about the stand at Thermopylae, I have moved this to the top of my reading list. In Gates of Fire, Pressfield not only tells the story of the stand, but he conveys a sense of the philosophy, the religion, and the social structure of the men and women of that period of time. It also makes the USMC's reading list.

Here's an excerpt from an interview with Pressfield on Alexander:

But for me, Alexander's defining preoccupation wasn't sex or power or subjecting other peoples to his will (as I've read in other books, and which are all legitimate approaches.)

I believe his life was about heroic ambition, and I use the word "heroic" in the Homeric sense, that is, derived from an era of legend and from characters like Achilles and Heracles, who were semi-divine and who lived their lives according to a code that transcends what we would call justice or morality. Alexander did that too, but not in an era of legend, in a real historical era. He's accessible to us. He's "modern." But he lived, I believe, according to that ancient heroic code. In the loftiest terms, I think, he sought to achieve undying glory, to set a mark for the ages. But justice, or at least the concept of conventional justice, took a back seat to glory.
And this comport with my study of the ancient Greeks. Don't waste time with bad movies, read a good book instead.
Congratulations! According to this article, more women over 40 are having babies. Amy Welborn certainly backs this up. I'm excited for her (and she kind of hits home for me -- I'm the same age as her husband, she's the same age as my wife).
...and another "best album list" This one, best discs for 2004, from the publishers of Chritianity Today. My daughter disses it -- "too pop," but I think it's not a bad sample -- it's got Buddy Miller, for example. Pay attention to the one's that missed the cut. The blithering daughter likes Todd Hertz's pick.
Make it Sing. I love the new U2 disc. Great review here.* See also CT's review, here. The song that's currently on my repeat button, Yahweh:

Take these shoes
Click clacking down some dead end street
Take these shoes
And make them fit
Take this shirt
Polyester white trash made in nowhere
Take this shirt
And make it clean, clean
Take this soul
Stranded in some skin and bones
Take this soul
And make it sing

Yahweh, Yahweh
Always pain before a child is born
Yahweh, Yahweh
Still I'm waiting for the dawn

Take these hands
Teach them what to carry
Take these hands
Don't make a fist
Take this mouth
So quick to criticise
Take this mouth
Give it a kiss

Yahweh, Yahweh
Always pain before a child is born
Yahweh, Yahweh
Still I'm waiting for the dawn

Still waiting for the dawn, the sun is coming up
The sun is coming up on the ocean
This love is like a drop in the ocean
This love is like a drop in the ocean

Yahweh, Yahweh
Always pain before a child is born
Yahweh, tell me now
Why the dark before the dawn?

Take this city
A city should be shining on a hill
Take this city
If it be your will
What no man can own, no man can take
Take this heart
Take this heart
Take this heart
And make it break

______________
* This link take's you to Kenneth Tanner's review as republished by the National Review Online (I figure they've got bandwidth). In the alternative, you can read the original here.

Tuesday, November 23, 2004

Some Great Harry Potter Links. In honor of today's release of the Prisoner of Azkaban:

If you haven't seen Azkaban and haven't read the book, I strongly recommend reading the book. While director Alfonso Cuarón did a fine job, he did leave out a number of key points and scenes -- my daughter and I figure it would've only taken another 2 to 5 minutes of movie time to have added these.

Sunday, November 21, 2004

Cool (Adult) Toy: All I want for Christmas is the Oakley Thump.
Cabinet Seats? I'm very happy about Condi Rice -- that's a lock.

Has Agriculture or Commerce been filled? I like Zell Miller for Ag and Herman Cain for Commerce.
Fresno. I've been out of town all week in Fresno, CA. The highlight of the week was being wined and dined by blogger extraordinaire, Peter Sean Bradley, more about below. I stayed at the downtown Radisson which promised Wi-Fi in every room. It must've been on a rotating basis, because I was able to get it for somewhere between 30 seconds and 5 minutes each night. Not good for blogging.

More bad news: I learned when I upgraded my OS, I'd wiped out my Earthlink software -- I stopped by Best Buy and CompUSA, hoping to get a promo disc, but nada.

Fresno was cold -- but I'd been warned of this by Mr. Bradley, so I was steeled and ready to go.

Peter was a very gracious host, driving out to the hotel to pick me up, giving me a tour of Fresno, taking me out for tapas and beer, wonderful conversation, and not letting me pay for a thing. (I owe you big time, Peter.)

And, as usual, he has asked several probing questions and given me much to think about.

Oh, and work went well too.

I got back Friday night and spent Saturday morning catching up on mail and things. Then Joe and I went out back and split wood for a few hours. I remember when President Reagan used to split wood, I thought it was kind of a photo-op thing, but the more I do it, the more I love doing it. Whether it's the well seasoned log that I can split with one whack or the very green (and too long) piece in which I bury my wood grenade before hearing that satisfying cracking noise (like think ice breaking on a pond), it's all good.