Rock Hall Finally Gets Some Balls

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame finally addressed two of its most glaring (conscious) oversites Monday by inducting BLACK SABBATH and the SEX PISTOLS into its honorees. I have been a critic of the Rock Hall's selections since around 1995, when they moved out of the easy to agree upon sixties into the seventies (a band's first album must be 25 years old to be eligible). THe seventies began the fragmentation of rock music, where all sorts of genres, country-rock, heavy metal, progressive rock, southern rock, funk, disco, punk, pub, and countless sub genres began to appear. It also covers the era when Rolling Stone Magazine and other such publications appointed themselves arbiters of our musical taste, and decided what was good and what was merely popular. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has been, unfortunately, guided by those initial prejudices.

Critical darlings like The Ramones and Clash get in on their first year of eligibility whereas the band that has come to represent punk rock, and truly did represent it 1976-78 in its heydey, The Sex Pistols, has to wait several years for entrance. The lone true Sex Pistols album, Never Mind the Bullocks, is one of the best selling of all time and is consistently listed in top albums lists and artists favorites. Punk rock is THE MOST IMPORTANT development in music in the second half of the seveties, and no one can dispute that its two most important bands were the Sex Pistols and the Clash. The Clash may have been better musicians, but that's where Rolling Stone and the Rock Hall never get it, Punk is not about the music so much as the IMAGE and the Sex Pistols were all about image. And there was a badge of honor in punk in not really being able to play your instruments, and Sid Vicious never even really learned to play the bass (his parts on the album were all recorded by original bassist Glen Matlock).

Far worse than dishonor done the Sex Pistols has been the BLACK SABBATH, who should have been inducted with fellow heavy metal trailblazer Led Zeppelin back in 1995. Critics have never liked Ozzy Osbourne's band with their satanic undertones and their simple blues based riffing (no simpler than already inducted AC/DC). THe band itself had even gotten tired of hearing about their snubbing, saying with guitarist Tommy Iommi saying that the nomination was meaningless because it was not voted in by the fans. Sabbath sold millions of records and recorded classic songs such as Paranoid, War Pigs and Iron Man. The hand of the Rock Hall may have been forced with the upstart UK Rock Hall inducting Sabbath two weeks ago in their 2nd induction, and certainly there have been many fans, petitions and well-rounded critics making the case for Sabbath (and the Sex Pistols) for the last several years, so maybe they just caved into the pressure. Fine. Whatever it takes. If people like Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers and Brenda Lee can be in the ROCK and roll hall of fame than there is certainly room for Black Sabbath. I mean come on, the DELLS? They had one hit. One hit. My only qualm with the induction I guess will have to be that they are only inducting the original line up, despite there being several prominent names attached to the band in later years, who are certainly more deserving of being in the rock and roll hall of fame than half the people that came in as the Grateful Dead (including the person primarily played tamborine and marracas). Ronnie James Dio, Vinnie Appice, and Geoff Nicholls are all important parts of the Sabbath story, albeit later one.

Other inductees are less controversial. Lynyrd Skynyrd finally made it in, another fan favorite and certainly an prime influnce on all these new southern rockers (My Morning Jacket being my favorite). Certainly writing the song Freebird, the number two most played song on classic rock radio (after stairway to heaven) helps. And then Sweet Home Alabama. Solid song, despite its racist politics. Anyway, they're fine. Let em in I say. And then there is Miles Davis, whose connection to Rock Music is questionable at best. THe Rock Hall does this, putting in so-called influences... but that doesn't really seem to make since. You don't see prominent cricket players in the Baseball hall of fame. Miles Davis would never consider himself a rock and roll artist. But fine, he's great. He's certainly more important than Frankie Lyman and the Teenagers. And then there is Blondie. I like Blondie, everyone has a blondie greatest hits cd or tape in their collection. But would anyone really argue they are deserving on the Hall of fame in their second year of eligibility? Can anyone even really argue they belong amongst the Beatles and David Bowie? I mean there isn't really anything they did that three other bands at the same time were'nt doing better, and there main influential claim to fames seems to be name checking Grand Master Flash before anyone who wasn't in New York knew who he was in Rapture (Flash is Fast. Flash is cool.). Why not just induct Flash himself?

So now we come to the bitch and moan section... Certainly the Rock Hall has reached the time when rap music can be inducted and the first members should be without a doubt, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. Flashreleased his first single in 1979, and had a profound influence on the first six years of Rap music, especially with the first rap crossover hit, the Message, a serious-minded piece that was years ahead of Public Enemy and NWA for its description of ghetto life.

Another critically-influenced oversite is ALICE COOPER, one of the best selling artists of all time and the leading american contributor to the Glam movement. I swear if KISS gets in before Alice I am boycotting the ROck Hall forever (and there is definitely a move to get KISS in). Alice Cooper began his career in the late sixties as a pioneer of theatrical shock rock. His early band the SPiders are referenced by David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust album (Alice is actually a big influence on Bowie's glam period). He recorded several top ten US hit singles and several platinum albums. His influence on modern day shock masters like Marilyn Manson cannot be questioned. Oh and he wrote great catchy songs.

ANd then there is the category of PROGRESSIVE ROCK. Critics hate prog rock. Fans love it. It was, much to their chagrin, the most popular music from 1971-76. After Zeppelin, no one sold more albums or filled more stadiums than YES. Yes is actually probably the most successful band not in the Hall of Fame. Roundabout is the third most played song on classic rock radio (right after Freebird) and the album FRAGILE is an essential element to any classic rock collection. Their personel changes are legendary, as is their 80's comeback with Owner of a Lonely Heart, a number one hit song. Yes is one of the more influential bands of all time, inspiring countless imitators for years, and spwaning several successful side-projects. They brough science fiction into the rock iconography with their obscure lyrics and gorgeous album covers and created the 20 minute epic. A lot of critics say that alone should keep them out. But last year Yes released a five disk box set and toured the world, selling out shows from here to India. Obviously I am a Yes fan, but the Rock and ROll Hall of Fame needs to serve all kinds of Rock music and the lack of Yes is comparable to not having the Who (indeed, Yes have sold more albums than the Who).

Two Men and a Bomb: PARADISE NOW

What better way to celebrate thanksgiving than to watch something that makes you truly thankful that you live in America. And though there is much messed up with this country (that I am wont to complain about) we don't have to deal with members of our family joining up to become suicide bombers to battle the oppression as we are held hostage in our own land. That is precisely the situation in the excellent PARADISE NOW, a movie that could and would never be made in hollywood, but can, through the amazing collaborative spirit of the continental film market, be made by a Palestinian director and a Dutch, two Germans, an Israeli and a French Producer.

Director Hany Abu-Assad studied the interrogation transcripts of suicide bombers who had failed, read Israeli official reports and spoke to people who personally knew bombers who died -- the friends and families and mothers to find out exactly what makes someone sign up to die for Allah. He of course discoved that every stary is unique and so he gives us a movie three distinct view points: two friends who sign up to be martyrs and the female friend of one of them, herself the daughter of a famous martyr. Said and Khaled work dead end auto mechanic jobs under the oppression of the Israeli occupation of Palestine. Their mission is simple, go into Tel Aviv and blow something up, the more soldiers you get the better. They are strapped into their bomb suits (which can not be removed without be detonated) and head over the border, only to be instantly spotted. After they are seperated the confusion begins and second act is given over to wether the men will go through with their task on their own or give up. I don't want to give anything away because that is part of the joy of PARADISE NOW, really getting into the minds of a suicide bombers...

But I've made the movie sound far more serious than it actually is. There are tremendous moments of comedy and tender moments of romance. The cinematagrophy is gritty and direct and performances are excellent. I especially liked Said's mother (Hiam Abbass) one of the most conflicted characters every filmed who sparkles in every scene she is on screen. There is also a great Last Supper visual referrence than was amusing. In all PARADISE NOW will make you think. It is a movie that challenges without preaching and offeres several viewpoints to take or leave. It is ambiguous, but has to be, it is not one story, but rather a story of an entire people, living in horrendous conditions that we in America can only imagine (this movie can help you do that)

PARADISE NOW is recommended to lovers of Political topics, anyone whose ever been to Morrocco in Epcot, people scouting this year's foreign language oscar field, and anyone with a big beard considering shaving. Rick's Rating: A-

4 Days in the Desert: JARHEAD

Let's start by saying just because a movie is about war does not make it intrinsically political. ANd just because this war we are in looks strangely like our last one, does not make this movie 'calculated.' JARHEAD is based off the personal and funny memoirs of Anthony Swofford, and follows swoff's through boot camp to the minefields of Iraq and back home again. It is harrowing to say the least and I walked out saying to our wife that our hypothetical son is never joining the marines. I tend to have that feeling after most war movies, I have so much respect for what these soldiers go through, especially those who don't have a whole lot of other options for advancement. And I understand the faceless mentallity that combat requires from its participants, unquestionably following orders, etc. But it is not a life I would want for myself or anybody I loved. And as you watch Jake Gylenhaal is a sure to be oscar-nominated performance, you will love him too. He's a kid, like all these guys, given a gun and taught to hate (as the old Jethro Tull song gos), he didn't ask for all this mess. And the group think is so frightening, for example, the harrowing scene where they watch Apocalypse Now to rev themselves up for combat???

The entire ensemble is brilliant. Peter Saarsgard, morally questionable as usual, plays Swoff's sniper siter, a man born to be a marine. And Jamie Foxx is the squad sergeant, one of those who drank the kool-aid, he's a lifer and everyone had better be as miserable as he is, but he'll never let you know he's miserable. And then there is CHris Cooper the man at the head of the whole battalion I guess, who is only in the movie a couple of times but always makes the scenes swirl around himself while fires up his troops. But those are just the names. THe real stars are all the soldiers, adding to story with their little idiosyncrocies and personal story lines (like the marine whose wife is pregnant) or the one whose wife dumps him via videotape...ouch!

Sam Mendes (American Beauty, Road to Perdition) turns in another masterful job as director, with great help from cinematographer Roger Deakins (The VIllage, SHawshank) - the film is tight and intense, and looks amazing. THe adaptation is flawless, capturing a forgetten war that basically lasted four days through the eyes of one man who could only think about whether or not he was going to get to shoot his gun. WIlliam Broyles, writer/creator of CHina Beach, lets just enough of swoff's voice come through in the voice over but leaves us plenty of time to be amazed buy the images, especially the long trek across the desert.

JARHEAD is a powerful important film that should be well-represented at the Oscars. What's really irratating is the number of critics who want it to be either an indictment of war, or a supportive missive for the current administration's 'nation' building. It's not either and it never intends to be. They are frightened by the movie's lack of meaning, its ambivalence and ambiguity. I wonder if they even watched the movie? It's one man's experience, and based on his experience, draw your own fucking conclusions. WHy do you need everything so nicely packaged?

JARHEAD is recommended for war movie fans, anyone with someone serving overseas currently, anyone who loves their country, anyone who hates their country, anyone who just wants to seee a good movie, and anyone who wants to watch Jake Gylenhaal run around in his undies and a Santa cap. Rick's Rating: A.

The Aids Movie Without Singing? THE DYING GAUL

I thought I'd take a moment to review this movie that most people probably won't see anyway and just let them know that that's okay... THE DYING GAUL is based on writer/director Craig Lucas's play about young screenwriter who writes a screenplay about his lover who died of AIDS and then must decide whether or not he will allow the studio to change the sex of the character to make it more audience friendly. Sounds like a good premise for a movie right? It is. In fact, the first twenty minutes of this movie are amazing, a perfectly acting tense dialogue between writer Peter Sarsgaard and Studio exec Campbell Scott. And then, Lucas basically forgets what his movie is about. He gets entangeled in a love triangle with Scott's wife, played by Patricia Clarkson. I have rarely been so frustrated with a director ... and so bored with the film that features several scenes of people talking on the phone, reading their email and chatting online. You know, the scene in CLOSER is so good, any other attempt to do that on film is just going to look like a bad copy. The music in the film, I have to mention, is recycled Steven Reich, and while its good to hear Reich's music get some exposure, I couldn't help but think the drag and drop style of sound design (rather than hiring a composer to do a score) is typical of the lack of thought put into this movie. They really dropped the ball on it, and this time there is no one to blame than the writer himself. He got the movie deal he wanted ... is this really the story he wanted to tell and if so why?

THE DYING GAUL is recommended for people who like to watch people talk on the phone, people who want to catch the first twenty minutes of a movie and then go somewhere, anywhere, people who want to see Campbell Scott's ass, and, well, Craig Lucas, cause I guess this is the movie he wanted to make. Rick's Rating: D

This Business Can Kill You: KISS KISS BANG BANG

Once upon a time I stumbled into a film that I had never seen a trailer for. It was Geena Davis as a housewife with amnesia, remembering bit by bit that she was a hitman and then kicked ass for the rest of the movie. It was Long Kiss Goodnight and one of my favorite movies of the year, and unfoturtanely for Writer Shane Black, I was one of the only ones who saw it. That's right, the largest spec script sale in the history of hollywood, 3 million dollars, flopped. And Shane Black was personan non gratis is la la land. Or so the story goes. It's amazing that the man who created the Lethal Weapon franchise had to take work as the Cafe Manager in As Good As it Gets in the long dry spell. But then he did what got him into the business in the first place, wrote a great script. And he got them to let him produce it.

KISS KISS BANG BANG is great fun, flick. Robert Downey Jr., in his latest (3rd?) career renaissance, plays a petty criminal who accidentally walks into an audition and gets whisked off to LA. There he is teamed up Val Kilmer, a P.I. who must give him on the job 'cop' training and goes by the catchy moniker of Gay Perry. He also runs into his first love, Harmony, played by fresh face Michelle Monaghan (NORTH COUNTRY) who I think we are going to see much from in the future (she is slated to appear in MI:3). The characters are tight and dialogue is funny and the directing, is perfect! K2B2 features one of the classic devices of literature, a suspect narrator, as Downey often must revise his story, jump back in flashback to explain something he missed or simply lie.... it's brilliant in the context of the film noir story, where the connections between the characters become deeper than originally thought. ANd of course, it;s funny.

I have to admit that it took about 10 minutes for the movie to find its stride because it jumps around so much right at the beginning, but once it found it, it danced straight on to the end. I have rarely had this much fun in the movie and I hope this is the first of many such films from writer/now-director Shane Black.

K2B2 is recommended to fans of buddy action film, people who like parodies of buddy action films, people who to support the latest bid for Robert Downey Jr's sobriety, and any one who wants to have a good time. RIck's Rating: A-

And Now, Like the Galapagos Turtles, We Wait...

Thought we'de check in over in Dover PA - a lot has happened since closing arguments were given in the first intelligent design trial. If you remember, the 9 member school board had instituting the teaching of I.D. in biology, with a short statement read before any discussion of evolution. Parents of eleven students brought the school district to court for teaching religion in the classroom. The trial featured many expert witnesses and included the original text of the supposed religion-free statement, which used the word God several times. The six-week tial came to an end November 4th, but that was when it got truly interesting.

In last week's election, the voters spoke - replacing 8 of the 9 members of the school board with candidates who ran specifically on an anti-I.D. platform. Then Pat Robertson spoke, and the best way to show what an utter idiot and asshole he is is to print his words verbatim: "I’d like to say to the good citizens of Dover: If there is a disaster in your area, don’t turn to God, you just rejected him from your city." He told them that "God is tolerant and loving, but we can't keep sticking our finger in his eye forever." Robertson said. "If they have future problems in Dover, I recommend they call on Charles Darwin. Maybe he can help them." So wait, God is tolerant and loving... but apparentally, you are not. This is the same man who called for the assassination of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, suggested that the State Department be blown up with a nuclear device, and said that feminism encourages women to "kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism and become lesbians."

Monday night was the final meeting of the LAME-DUCK school board in Dover, PA. Newly-elected members looked on without a voice as the departing board discussed air-conditioning units. But one of the new members did have a response to Robertson, saying “What he said was extremely irresponsible, but you have to consider the source,” said Judy McIlvaine, one of the eight recently elected board members, whose tenure will begin next month. “I think our community is sensible enough not to take him too seriously.” Even the local religious leaders are shrugging off 700 Club leader's posturing. A pastor at Salem Lutheran Church in Dover, said he wasn't surprised to hear that sentiment from Robertson, whom he called a "war monger" who is out of touch with mainstream Christians. But the best response, of course, came from a student. Seventeen-year-old Meghan Hilbert, a junior at Dover High School and one of two student representatives to the board, said Robertson’s remarks pissed her off. “I think it’s morally wrong for him to say when God’s going to help someone and when he’s not. I don’t believe anything he says,” she added. “He owes Dover a big apology, especially our churches.” SO THERE! For me, I can't understand why this person is still on the air... Let's look at it the other way, if there was someone in another country, like lets say, Venezuala, calling for the assassination of our president... I don't think that person would be on television for that much longer.

Anyway, the final battle on I.D. for this particular incarnation of the school board was rather unexciting. One of the out-going ousted members, David Napiersky, proposed dropping the school's policy on Intelligent Design in light of last week’s election. He said, “it would be good of us to recognize the voters have spoken and now we can serve them by not wasting anymore resources on the lawsuit.” He offered paying the plaitiffs $1. No one on the current board seconded the opinion and board president Sheila Harkins quickly pronounced it dead. After the meeting he reiterated his comments, saying that although he personally agrees with I.D., he could see that it didn't serve the public interest to continue the debate when the new school board would obviously overturn the policy anyway, saying "We can’t defend it. It’s gone."

It is quite possible that he was encouraged to push this tactic by the Discovery Institute, a pro-I.D. 'think' tank (sorry I have to put quotes around think if they are going to be 'thinking' about I.D.). Knowing full well that the case for the Dover School Board looks pretty bad, the forces of creationism don't want to give evolution such an easy victory in court, and have to appeal a case that would be hard to win in front of the supreme court... for a decisive take on evolution in the classroom. New members of the school board, on the other hand, seem very confident in the case, saying they were looking forward to hearing what the judge had to say.

Judge John E. Jones III said he hopes to reach a decision by the end of the year in the non-jury trial. It is ironic, as the attorney for the Plaitiff pointed out in court that the story of Kitzmiller v. Dover played out, ironically, in a state founded on the principles of religious liberty. For now, we will just have to be satisfied that in the court of public opinion, and in the minds of voters, Intelligent Design has been dealt a crushing blow.

FOR MY EARLIER PIECE on the Dover Trial (and the wonderful comment posted on it, please click here.

Boldly Going Where No Woman Has Gone Before: NORTH COUNTRY

NORTH COUNTRY is one of those movies you go to because you feel like you should. Nobody really looks forward to sitting through The Accused or Shindler's List. Kind of like none of the women in this story really looked forward to going to work in mines, where only one in thirty workers were female and the industry wide sexual harrassment went right up to corporate. NORTH COUNTRY is a fictionalized account of a real class action lawsuit that changed the way these type of companies had to do business, a 1984 case in the Northern Minnesota Eveleth Mines. The movie is set in 1989, againstt the backdrop of the Anita Hill hearings in congress, and though that touch-up is not the only the story receives, it is one of the most inspired.

Director Niki Cairo (WHALE RIDER) a New Zealand native, faithfully delivers a strong case for the women, led by CHarlize Theron (in yet another role where they have to cover her in gunk so she is less pretty) and the always outstanding Francis McDormand. The sense of dread rises each day on the job as incidents build. And then comes the third act, the trial scene, which really kind of blows it for the whole film. My lawyer wife says that on the top of their being some unrealistic witness badgering and twists in the courtroom, the hollywoodization of the case forced them to concentrate on the issues of sexual promiscuity in the plaintiff rather than what the case was really about, sexual harrassment in the workpalce, and right when the movie should be brac ing up to make its point, it dives back into a flashback that has very little to do with what the story was about. I have to fully agree with her. I left the movie partially moved, but not nearly as much as I felt I should have been. There are changes of character than just happen, for no reason. There are big 'moments' that in the long run would mean nothing. And there are entire characters in the film that seeem to have nothing to do with the story it is trying to tell. So its clunky to summarize. And the real trial it is based on went for 10 years. It seems to me that the story created this central character to hang its theme on, and then they were kind of stuck with her, and it is in the third act where her story began to superceed that of the woman vs. mine, and became a referrendum on her teenage pregnancy. Yeah, its that far-removed. But that doesn't kill the moving completely. The performances are great, especially Sissy Spacek as Theron's mother (I could watch her read the phone book) and the ensemble of women at the mine, including Michelle Monaghan (fresh off the role of Harmony in Kiss Kiss Bang Bang) and Rusty Schwimmer as Big Betty. And the filming of the mine and the work done in it is world that you never get to see perfectly captured.

NORTH COUNTRY is recommended for women miners, people who want to catch the first two-thirds of a film, fans of Sissy Spacek, and anyone who ever thought their job was shit. Rick's Rathing: B.

Baby Bears Say Please Help Us

Okay, so I am not a crazy environmental freak, but Herr President and his cronies have such a bad record on protecting out furry friends that I feel myself speaking up more and more. Today they have put forth a proposal to to delist the Grizzly Bear from the nation's endangered species list. They would like to 'upgrade' their status from endangered to threatened. On the surface, this would seem to be an item for celebration: since 1982, the number of Grizzly Bears in Yellowstone park has risen from the frightening 200 to about 600. But removing the Grizzly Bear from the endangered species list opens it up to a whole lot of, well, danger, such as the potential for Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana to legalize the hunting of the bears. Although the population would be tightly monitored for 5 years after the change, this would only cover the 6 million acres under the proposal, even though the Grizzly Bear's natural range is nearer to 9 million. One-third of the bears' current habitat could be opened to drilling, logging and human development under the agency's plan. Proponents of the delisting point to the recent revival sparking between elk hunters and bears. This is in part because the whitebark pine seeds grizzlies need are in shorter supply now from a beetle infestation induced by warming climate. OKAY WAIT - so we are supposed to let bears die in foavor of people who shoot animals for fun, because bears have go out looking for a seed closely linked to female bears ability to have children because we've fucked up the environment enough to cause climate change ?!?!?!? Does that seem fair? And who gives a shit about elk hunters. These people want to SHOOT BEARS. THat's what they want. Defenseless elk are not enough. They want to kill bears. And the reason the bear population dwinded in the first place was do to hunting and the destruction of habitat. Isn't that what Herr President is proposing again?

Grizzly Bears are considered a keystone species to an ecosystem, that means you can tell if the ecosystem is healthy by the number of bears that it can sustain. And just a reminder, Bear Attacks on humans are extremely rare. A person is 180 times more likely to be killed by a bee than a bear and 160,000 times more likely to die in a car accident.

If you love bears like I do, please check this blog for updates as the public will have 90 days to comment on the proposal and I will include links to where you can do that. If you want to help the bears right now, you can ADOPT-A-BEAR like Erin and I have. It only cost $25 and it will make a great christmas gift for someone who cares about their world.

It Can't Happen Here: GOOD NIGHT AND GOOD LUCK

I have always thought that the McCarthy hearings would make a for a great movie. Unfortunately, GOOD NIGHT AND GOOD LUCK is not that movie. It's barely even a movie. The George Clooney directed film follows Edward R. Murrow as he decides to take on Senator Joe McCarthy with his weekly investigative news program. And that's basically the entire movie. Clooney relies on a lot of original source material (McCarthy only appears in actual footage from the program) to let the audience experience the story as the original television audience might have. It is an intersting tactic, but it hardly makes for entertaining cinema. There are giant chunks of the film that were essentially watching the original show and I couldn't help but think if I was watching the History Channel I might actually be able to just watch the original show. David Straitharn turns in a spotless portrayal of Murrow, what there is to the character. Clooney never bothers to let us inside the main character, we know nothing about him other than his show. Does he have a wife? Is he conflicted about taking on a senator? Is he a nice guy? We never know. And the only conflict in the film, McCarthy, doesn't actually appear in the film as a character. So what Clooney gives us is a pretty one sided account of a tv newsman who pursues a story and and puts it on. Yeah, that's exciting. Not to mention, historically, Murrow was not all that responsible for the end of McCarthy's reign. This is not Woodward and Bernstein taking down Nixon. Many people had already turned on McCarthy and began speaking out, in the Senate itself in fact. Murrow was just the first to put it on prime time. The movie looks great, filmed in black and white. The story itself is black and white too, and clocking in at 90 minutes, Clooney gives us no room for thought or investigation, i.e. why did people follow McCarthy, how did TV perpetuate him, etc. Not to mention all the time given over to rather bland jazz music performed in the CBS studio - a glaring inacuracy if there ever was one - the battle over live vs. recorded music had occured years earlier over the radio waves. So yeah, the movie is a little dull, and little heavy-handed. Not to say that McCarthy was doing a good thing, but if you are going to make such an overt comparison to the PATRIOT ACT, I would prefer if it was a little more subtle and less speechafying. GOOD NIGHT AND GOOD LUCK is getting a lot of Oscar buzz, which I hope is more for the content than the quality of the film. This is Clooney's second film, the first CONFESSIONS OF A DANGEROUS MIND was horribly flawed in its tone, so I can't but help think maybe George ought to stick to acting and producing.

GOOD NIGHT AND GOOD LUCK is recommended to history fans, people who want to see actors smoke like a case of cigarrettes over the course of the film, anyone who sided their house with alcoa aluminum, and well, I can't think of anyone else. Rick's Rating: C -

What's this on my Locker? THE SQUID AND THE WHALE

What a great movie. Totally biased walking in as Noah Baumbach wrote and directed my favorite comedy of all time KICKING AND SCREAMING, and no, that's not the Will Ferrell soccer movie. Since then, Baumbach has managed one flawed gem MR. JEALOUSY, one just flawed HIGHBALL, and one screenplay for someone one else THE LIFE AQUATIC. THE SQUID AND THE WHALE is far simpler and more immediate than any of those projects, mostly because its ripped right out of Baumbach's own life. Who is the Squid and WHo is the Whale? He leaves those choices up to the audience as Walt and Frank must struggle the first couple months of their parents divorce. With sparking performances from every cast member, this movie really feels like it has oscar wings. And its limited release roll out has kept in peoples minds for much longer than a movie of this nature normally get. Jeff Daniels and Laura Linney play the parents, flawed to the core, but with the best intentions (for themselves) for their children, played by Jesse Eisenberg and Owen Kline, who both have their own way dealing with the divorce. Walt, the older child, wins a talent contest singing a song he wrote, which is really Pink Floyd's Hey You, and Frank, well, he gives up using tissues to dispose of, well, you know. Its funny, its honest, its uncomfortable and its far too short. At 81 minutes, just as I am fully invested in the film it ends. Its not as if it hasn't wrapped itself up, it has. Its not as if I felt like there was any thing missing, there isn't. But... I wanted more. It was too good to only give me 81 minutes. So that keeps it from being perfect, but its the only thing. THis movie is pure joy. A funny movie about one of the most serious issues that ever happen to a kid... Oh, did I mention the stand out performances of supporting actors William Baldwin as a Tennis Pro giving lessons to Frank and giving his mother, well, something else, and Anna Paquin as Daniel's student who moves in with him in his new bachelor pad.

THE SQUID AND THE WHALE is recommended to anyone whose parents got a diviorce or who ever thought they were going to, fans of sharp witty writing, people scouting oscars, and people who want catch a quick move. Rick's Rating: A-

Songs of Hope, Songs of Despair

I have a lot on my mind this morning, too much in fact. Bits and pieces of news items that are tugging me this way and that way so I thought I had better put them down in one place. Without further freddie adu, here are some reason I am filled with hope.

1)Today the house struck part of energy bill that allowed for drilling in the Alaskan Wildlife Refuge. That means, maybe, the polar bears are safe once again. Oil Company Special Interest Groups have been pushing the republicans to open the Artic Preserves for their own profit for years now, despite the fact that there is no formidible knowledge about just how much oil is actually there. The Arctic Refuge's coastal tundra provides America's only land denning habitat for polar bears. According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologists, between 1981 and 2000, 42 percent of the on-land polar bear dens were dug within the Arctic Refuge's Coastal Plain. Polar bears with newborn cubs are especially sensitive to human activity, and can be prematurely displaced from their winter dens by the noise, vibration, and human disturbance created by seismic oil exploration. Current seismic exploration methods require numerous vehicles to move in a tight grid pattern across the tundra, discharging explosives or creating shock waves with large "thumper trucks." Early den abandonment can be fatal to cubs unable to fend for themselves, withstand the winter temperatures, or travel with their mother. Then of course there is the "incidental take" permit apllied for and received from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Incidental take, in federal parlance, means to kill. The permit allowed oil companies working along the edge of the Beaufort Sea to harrass and kill polar bear and walrus in the course of their extraction and exploration activities. This permit expired in March, 2003, then was renewed until March 28, 2005. So essentially, people voting for drilling are ANTI-BABY POLAR BEAR. Special thanks to the wildlife.org website for much of the above info.

But today the house dropped the controversial oil drilling rider from the energy bill. 25 Republican Moderates, led by Charles Bass of New Hampshire, signed a letter to GOP leaders asking for the change in the much larger $54 billion budget cut bill. The senate budget included the measure, so the two versions will have to be reconciled before it goes into effect. YEAH POLAR BEARS!!!

2) Another reason I am full of hope is the recent appearance on several different talk shows by one SENATOR JOHN McCAIN. McCain, one of the sanest men left in the Republican party, appeared on Steven A. Smith's sports talk show QUITE FRANKLEY and on the comedy central fake news program THE DAILY SHOW. In both interviews he was humorous, personable and smart. He is behind the the steriod legislation making its way through the senate, and the anti-torture bill (which Chaney and Herr President didn't want passed). He is becoming a more outspoken critic of the current administration and must have mentioned Colin Powell three times on the Daily Show, along the lines of 'I've spoken with Colin about this and he is in complete agreement.' I know it is early, but I don't think I can hold back my excitement for a McCAIN-POWELL presidential bid... Two moderates, two war heros, two men who have been critical of the current administration (Even while he was a part of it, Powell always seemed to be the voice of reason). McCain has a new book out, character studies of historical heros, looks pretty interesting. And the fact that he has been on the Daily Show three times now and can hold his own with John Stewart... it bodes well for the future.

3). Why else am I full of hope? How about the fact that Scooter Libby appears to want to fight his indictment. The less he rolls over, the more information will come out, the more we might get to see what was really going on. And how depraved is this guy? Anyone read this book he wrote in 1996? “The young samurai‘s mother had the child sold to a brothel where she swept the floors and oiled the women. At age 10, the madame put the child in a cage with a bear trained to couple with young girls so the girls would be frigid and not fall in love with their patrons. They fed her through the bars and aroused the bear with a stick when it seemed to lose interest. Groups of men paid to watch. Like other girls who had been trained this way, she learned to handle many men in a single night and her skin turned a milky white.” WHAT?!?!?! And I'm worried about the polar bears. Yeah, this guy is going to exonerate the administration.

4) Oh, and maybe, just maybe Judicial Nominee Alito would not vote to overturn Roe v. Wade, but he makes no promises.

OKAY, REASONS TO DESPAIR......

1) This is almost painful to write about. But on Tuesday, 76% of the Texans who bothered to vote (which is something like 18%) voted for HATRED, DISCRIMINATION, and INTOLERANCE. That's right, Prop 2 another of these so-called defense of marriage acts passed in Texas on Tuesday. I am sick of this FUCKING STATE on its high horse thinking these god damn churchies sitting in their pews judging everyone else are somehow more MORAL then people who want nothing more to spend the rest of their lives in a COMMITTED and LOVING relationship. Which is more than I can say for most of these evangelical shits, who have some of the highest divorce rates in the country. Not to mention incidents of spousal abuse and alcoholism. Who are you to judge how a person should live their life? And this doesn't even get into the CONSTITUTION of America which guarantees equal right to everyone... If the gov't wants to have an institution such as marriage, it cannot arbitrarily withhold that designation from one group of people. It could as easily say that blondes should not marry blondes, they should only marry brunnettes. Or how about a law that says Evangelicals can only marry Jews. That's just as ridiculous. I am really really realy disappointed in this state. At least I live in the ONLY COUNTY that voted against the ban. But that's little consolation today. As the number of states in which I feel it is acceptable to live gets smaller, I can only hope that a massive plague will some day come to wipe out all the intolerant people who are out of step with progress. YOU DO NOT REPRESENT ME! In texas, you are 76% of of the 18% of the registered voters which are only 60% of the state (not including illegals or students registered in other states). What is that? THat's right, 8%. 8% of the entire state is a biggot. And they are deciding for the rest of us.

2) How do I follow that? I guess with two bits from Keith Obermann's COUNTDOWN that may have flown under your radar. You looking for more corruption in the administration? Anyone heard of Tamiflu? The supposed best defense if the bird flu breaks out? Herr President‘s new $7 billion bird flu plan calls for up to $1 billion to be spent buying Tamiflu. That‘s driven the stock price of Gilead Sciences, which makes Tamiflu, from $35 a share to $47 a share. Do you know who used to be the chairman of Gilead Sciences? Who, though he has recused himself from decisions involving it, still owns between $5 million and $25 million worth of the company. DONALD RUMSFELD. Or how about this for independence of the media. The Web Site Political Money Line posts congressional ethics documents that indicate that a month ago, just after his indictment, Tom DeLay accepted a free trip to reach a previously scheduled speaking engagement. The cost of a round trip ticket from Houston to Washington and night in a hotel, $13,995.55. And the compant that sponsored that speaking engagement and put up the money for DeLay to trek back, FOX News. $14,000 for a round trip airfare? I can go on priceline right now and get a cheaper rate to Yemen.

3) Okay one last bit of outrage. Here's a little 1984 for you. Do you realize that every page that comes out of your color printer is encoded with hidden information that the government could use to track it back to you? That's right, an article in PC World magazine pointed out that printouts from many color laser printers contained yellow dots scattered across the page, viewable only with a special kind of flashlight. The article quoted a senior researcher at Xerox Corp. as saying the dots contain information useful to law-enforcement authorities, a secret digital "license tag" for tracking down criminals. It was supposed to be a secret, but the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a San Francisco consumer privacy group, said it had cracked the code used in a widely used line of Xerox printers. The EFF said it has identified similar coding on pages printed from nearly every major printer manufacturer, including Hewlett-Packard, which makes my printer. And Seth Schoen, the EFF technologist who led the organization's research, said he had seen the coding on documents produced by printers that were at least 10 years old. The U.S. Secret Service acknowledged yesterday that the markings, which are not visible to the human eye, are there, but claims they are to track and prosecuting counterfeiters. As much as I beleive that intent, they are still INVADING MY PRIVACY. Schoen said that the existence of the encoded information could be a threat to people who live in repressive governments or those who have a legitimate need for privacy. It reminds him, he said, of a program the Soviet Union once had in place to record sample typewriter printouts in hopes of tracking the origins of underground, self-published literature. The original article which I have liberally copied and reposted her is available on the Washington Post.

Math Can Make You Cry: PROOF

Everyone loves a good movie about mathematical proofs. Don't they? Anyone? Okay, so the topic is not the most exciting premise for a movie, but PROOF is not really about math. It is about the idea of proof, and whether you can really prove anything. Director John Madden (Shakespeare in Love) brings the 2001 Pulitzer Prize winning play to the screen, a story of the daughter of a math genius who in the wake of her father's death, reveals a new proof of her own devising that may or may not actually be hers. Playwright David Auburn does a good job transfering the story to the screen (with a cowriter), though it never quite shakes the pacing of a play. But there is a lot of thought in the film, and great performances, and dense dialogue that you rarely get in a studio initiated project. Paltrow reprises the role the she played in the Donmar Warehouse production in London for director Sam Mendes (not the director of this film), though apparently a few people felt that the origianl broadway actress Mary-Luise Parker should have gotten the role for the screen. I don't understand the issues people have with Paltrow. She has been one of my favorite actresses since the Pallbearer, and she tugs me emotionally like very few can. The rest of the cast is packed, Anthony Hopkins, Hope Davis, and Jake Gyllenhaal who seems to be in every movie that comes out these days, and all turn in great performances. In fact, there is very little wrong with PROOF, which is almost its problem. Its is a story of a messy chaotic groudbreaking proof, one that will change mathematics for ever, but the story and its cinematic expression is pretty standard. The girl cries, the boy looks strong and then doesn't trust her, the sister tries to run her life... its just a little too neat. For me, the highlight was seeing the University of Chicago on film and my old neighborhood. But if that was what I was looking at, you can't help but wonder why... And its the same problem these plays as movies always have - unless you drastically rethink it, it will always be a play and a play is not a movie. I don't need car chases or anything but... ANyway, its a great story and as permenent reflection of the story, it will be solid for years (I never saw the play, so if you didn't either, then do see the movie) because its a story that should be told. I enjoyed it, I even cried, I just couldn't help but feel sad that I was not watching it on Broadway or the West End where the same presentation would have had that much more power.

Proof is recommended for former mathletes, residents and former residents of Hyde Park, fans of Gwyneth, and ANYONE who didn't get to see the play. Rick's Rating: B+

Finally Beating the Patriots in Foxborough: Priceless

I gotta give a shout out to my boy Peyton Manning who lead an onslaught on the defending super bowl champs on monday night football in the most anticipated game of the season. After dropping the first seven (7!!!) straight games to Patriots in New England over his career, Peyton finally grabbed the monkey off his back and slapped it silly, leading the 8-0 Colts to a 40-21 victory and throwing for 321 yards and 3 touchdowns. Peyton is one of the smartest active players in football, and with his audible play calling he probably has more responsibility on the field than any one else, so its always going to be his burden to make or break a game, and last night he looked like an MVP candidate. But he wasn't the only hero. Edgerrin James rushed for over a hundred yards and both Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne caught touchdowns passes and had over 100 yards receiving. Which is why the team finally beat the Pats in Patland - it may have been Peyton's monkey, but he has never had the support he has this year. And I haven't even mentioned the defense. That's right, the defense, which limited the Pats to 46 yards TOTAL rushing and several 3 downs and punt possessions. And the former super bowl studs fall to 4-4 and look questionable for a playoff appearance. I've been a Colts fan since my days in Bloomington getting my MFA and I've been waiting for this day for a while. And it's not that I hate the Patriots, I'm just sick of them. I can't imagine a duller end to two superbowls than they have given us. And Tom Brady with his smug interviews men's magazine covers... America's team is and always has been the Colts. Back in the days of Johnny Unitas and Baltimore they were rugged and steamrolled over their opponents. THese days are much the same, its just that the steamrollers are going 80 miles an hour and resulting in amazing feats like last year's 49 touchdown passes for Manning (a new record). The Colts have been my preseason pick to win the superbowl for the last three years and this year it looks like they may just have enough to do it. THey are just going to have to get past my other boy Big Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers to do it... we'll see a little preview of that in three weeks from yesterday on another banner Monday Night Football match up.

In other football news - the Terrell Owens soap opera has been cancelled. Thank god. SHut him up please and if the media stopped covering every time he farted in public maybe he wouldn't have morphed into the egomaniacal monster that he has become. My advice to the Eagles would have been to keep him for the whole length of his contract and never play him but I guess that's a little much money for five years of nothing so they are going to release him at the end of the season and he'll have to find a new team to undermine and destroy. The Eagles look even more done than the Pats, unless they find another receiver to catch McNabb's bombs... hey, maybe they can trade for Randy Moss.

And how about a few props for the team of my youth, the Chicago Bears, or the baby bears as Michael Wilbon of PTI has been calling them (since he spent all last season referring to the Bulls as the baby bulls), sitting atop their division with lucky win after lucky win... Maybe they had to go to a training camp to give chicago an NFC North champ.

I almost don't even miss baseball (146 days till opening)... vote Johan for Cy Young! Trade Kyle and Liriano to the Yankees for Robinson Cano.

The Sound of Settling: SHOPGIRL

One could make a pretty legitimate debate out of who is having a bigger career renaissance right now, Steve Martin or Bill Murray. The answer is certainly not Chevy Chase. After watching the excellent SHOPGIRL, I'd have to go with Martin, who wrote and starred in this character comedy about a LA sales clerk (Claire Danes) who must choose between the old rich guy who is emotionally unavailable (Martin) and the young clueless slob who is emotionally retarded (Jason Schwartzman in his best performance ever). Based on Martin's novella, SHOPGIRL is smart, funny and emotionally engaging. Every performance sparkles and the director lets the scenes take the time they need to breath. My favorite moment in the movie is Martin's visit to Dane's tiny apartment. As she leaves to get 'wine' which is obviously so old it smells like vinegar, Martin has to sit on a futon in couch form, and anyone who has a little bit of a belly know how unflattering that is. He negotiates his posture for few seconds, and then a few seconds more. It is moment of brillance that captures the whole character, it's completely visual and cinematic, and is completely the result of the LOST IN TRANSLATION effect. Filmmakers feel free to let their stories breath, to sit and to grow. A good character based film is not a rush from scene to scene. It takes as long as it needs to. Remember all those scenes in BROKEN FLOWERS when Bill Murray just drives his car? And isn't it interesting I've listed to Murray movies after positing my debate question. Bill Murray may be getting the best roles of his career, but Steve Martin is writing them. He is making his own work. I think its only a matter of time before he begins directing as well.

The director of SHOPGIRL, Anand Tucker, is a unknown brit (HILLARY AND JACKIE his only other major credit), and he described the film as a classic Romance like the days of old. And though the movie feels well-directed, he really has a major misconception with what it is about. This is a movie about settiling. There is nothing less romantic than that. And its not a comfortable subject. It hurts to watch people lower expectations and just get by. But its what actually happens. And that is why the music Tucker chose for the film is so off. Lush strings, like the movies of old, lifting the characters up. Its really hokey. Not to mention dull, the same six notes over and over, until I'm begging for some Steve Reich (review for Dying Gaul upcoming). Anyway, it would be a minor problem with the film, if it wasn't so loud and constant... as it is now, the music really undercuts the tone and success of the film. Fortunately, this occcurs mostly during transitions, so you can tune it out a bit and focus on the imagery, which is always successful.

But the performances alone are worth going for (have to make a brief shout out here for supporting actress Bridgette Wilson-Sampras, the once 1st grade teacher in Billy Madison, who seems to have finally found her stride as a comic flusie ... and I guess she married Pete Sampras somewhere along the line). And the writing is amazing. SHOPGIRL is recommended for fans of Steve Martin, people who wish there was a My So Called Life after College, anyone who has ever worked retail, and anyone who goes through life passively (isn't that us all every once in a while). Rick's Rating: B+