Tiger Woods

I've thought about the recent Tiger Woods car crash.
We must center our thoughts on the fact that it occured during 2 AM. I drive around the city during the first hours of morning frequently. But consider that I'm a childless bachelor, and Woods is a married man who has two children. It's odd. If the crash had occured at 2 PM then I might believe that it was possibly caused by driver error- maybe he stepped on the accelerator when he intended to step on the brake. Yet...
Now I've read that the crash caused more than $8,000 worth of damage, and the Woods family is giving the run-around to police who want to question him about it.

Conclusion: something is rotten in the house of Woods; he is experiencing major problems of some sort, regardless of his denials.

Go. Download. Get warm, fuzzy feeling.

Go to this site. Contribute $2 to our good friend's cause, and download a good set of comedy. The event was hosted by the great Adam Carolla.

Bryan Bishop (AKA: Bald Bryan) is a 30-year-old man who has an inoperable brain tumor. He is strapped for cash, so every bit that you want to contribute to him will help immensely. As I wrote when I urged people to contribute to causes against breast cancer, you will feel much better about contributing money to him than you ever felt when you contributed to that scummy politician's campaign.

If you want to learn more about Bryan, go to www.aninconvenienttumor.com or www.hibryan.com

GUESTS: Dana Gould, Greg Fitzsimmons, Larry Miller, etc.
Special music performance by Bad Religion

Thanks.

Ghost World

I finished watching "Ghost World" (2001) a few minutes ago.
It is one of Scarlett J's first films. As expected, her acting is subpar. She underplays her role, which is actually better than overplaying a role yet unsatisfactory. Scarlett is generally a mediocre actress, and I am awatiting her appearance in Iron Man 2 apprehensively.
When one considers Thora Birch's performance in this movie and American Beauty he wonders why her career is basically a lost file in the "Where Are They Now?" cabinet. Maybe hse doesn't give good face. I dunno.
But let's return to this movie. I knew that it is from 2001, yet it seems as if it is a baby of the '90s because it is based on a graphic novel that was written during that decade. I half-expected to see the characters watch Seinfeld at some points-- the clothing, the hairstyles, melancholy themes, etc. all evoke that distinct '90s teen spirit.
There are nearly historic markings in the film: a boy who acts shy and gets red-faced and sweaty when he must act alongside the teen babes. I was touched by his inability to shake his shyness onscreen. I was shocked/depressed to learn that the boy is Brad Renfro, who died last year. RIP. Also, David Cross makes a rare, brief appearance here-- one of the few he made before his career soared.
Overall, it's fairly good, and I recommend it to anyone who has a hankerin' for that decade during these shitty times, especially if you were a teenager at the time. It has the sort of bizarre themes to which only a '90s teen can relate.

Great New Artist

This guy is the best musician who has sent a Friend request to me in a long time. Check him out. Also, if you live in the L.A. area and play bass or drums he wants you!

An Intellectual Discourse about Julia Stiles' Thespian Style

This morning I was forced to watch a movie that had Jason Lee and Julia Stiles as I ran on a treadmill. Whenever Stiles flashed onto the screen I wanted to yell something.
In the interest of my usual, thoughtful, insightful critique I will phrase it thusly:

"GODDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMN YOU SUCK! YOU SUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK! FUCKING QUIT ALREADY! SPRARE US. GOD... DAAAAAAAAMN YOU SUCK."

So there.

This Is It Review

Kenny Ortega delivers.
Michael Jackson, who repeatedly stresses that he is restraining himself because he is conserving his energy for the actual performances, was better than 99% of the performers out there today.
From a filmmaker's perspective, I studied Ortega's style. I gained immense repsect for him during the film. He allowed MJ to do the bulk of the navigation, but he was the steady rock throughout the process. He also remembered the "little things:" "shine a light on Michael when he's back there in the dark," "Michael, hold onto that rail for safety."
4.5/5 Stars- I would probably rank it a 5 if MJ knew that it was his final performance and therefore gave it his all.

Music and Remembrances ('cause it's my birthday)

"Music is real. Everything else is tricks, games and bullshit." -Marc Maron.

Warning: This post is going to be fairly random, and I might ramble a bit.

As this October 27th dawned my thoughts turned to Jim Morrison and Kurt Cobain. I have outlived them by five years. When I was a small child my mother often drove us from point A to B to C as we listened to a '60s-'70s "oldies station" that was known as Fox 97 in Atlanta. Fox 97 is now "The River" (or some such bullshit), and it plays mostly contemporary music. Oldies stations are extinct because my parents' generation is ancient- read: not a market demo in any business person's strategy.
And as I fell out of touch with my parents' music I missed only a handful of artists: obviously the Beatles and Stones, most Motown acts, the Beach Boys and the Doors. The Doors' music certainly has an enduring quality. The critics who have dismissed it as "adolescent" simply because Jim once included a verse about screwing his mother are as moronic as the people who dismissed Green Day's music because Bill Joe once included a reference about masturbation.
Jim Morrison and I had commonalities: we were both extremely bright and sensitive men who were born in Florida. He attended Florida State University briefly; I was born on its campus while my mother was earning her PhD. in literature. We both loved films and liked filmmaking. We both found our way to Los Angeles eventually. Also, given the way the "American experiment" has proceeded during the last decade I can't assure you that I won't find my way to Paris eventually.
When I think about Morrison and my new raison d'etre my thoughts turn to the abortion that Oliver Stone made when he attempted to profile The Doors. In my opinion the lone highlight of the film is when "Morrison" exposes himself to a Florida crowd then dances around and sings in the audience as he attempts to evade the police. He is otherwise superficially depicted as a slow-witted psychopath, and keyboardist Ray Manzarek's enormous contributions to the band and music are barely touched upon. I had a directing teacher named Larry Leahy who worked briefly on the set of that film. He swears that Kilmer was the incarnation of Morrison during the shooting of it. Whatever. For my money, I think that the documentary that the surviving Doors members are making will be much better.
So, in summation, if there is anything that I want to avoid for the rest of my life it is the desecration of legends when I attempt to honor them through film. I'm writing a screenplay about the Beach Boys now -- if it is anything like The Doors film, may I never live to 33.