— the most concise criticism of my comedy ever?? C’mon, people!! I’m throwin’ you GOLD!
The joke was as follows. A good friend of mine referred to the Bush family as a “class act;” I suggested that the class was “Remedial English.” Hence his candid imperative.
I keep explaining this to everybody, but nobody seems to get it: “I’M F!%$#ING HILARIOUS.”
I’ll be here every night this week, folks. Tip your waitresses, and don’t forget to try the tuna!!!
“Early One Morning,” by Edward Thomas
Early one morning in May I set out,
And nobody I knew was about.
I’m bound away for ever,
Away somewhere, away for ever.
There was no wind to trouble the weathercocks.
I had burnt my letters and darned my socks.
No one knew I was going away,
I thought myself I should come back some day.
I heard the brook through the town gardens run.
O sweet was the mud turned to dust by the sun.
A gate banged in a fence and banged in my head.
‘A fine morning, sir’, a shepherd said.
I could not return from my liberty,
To my youth and my love and my misery.
The past is the only dead thing that smells sweet,
The only sweet thing that is not also fleet.
I’m bound away for ever,
Away somewhere, away for ever.
“Jurassic World” (2015) was raptortastic and T-Rexific. It was also fun in another way, but I can’t think of a pun for “Indominus Rex.” I’d give it an 8 out of 10.
Seriously — this was a fun monster movie. (I, for one, maintain that these are horror-sci-fi movies at heart, and not the family adventure films that others seem to take them for. Even the theme music for this entire franchise seems to insist that a zippity good time was had by all, after dinosaurs devour adults and traumatize lost children.)
The kid in me thrilled to this movie’s great special effects and abundance of monsters. Those raptors are the coolest movie monsters since Aliens and Predators.
The action sequences were good. Did anyone else think the initial attack/ambush was an homage to the initial attack/ambush in “Aliens” (1986)? They have the heart rate monitors and helmet-cams and everything. I kept waiting for Corporal Hicks to yell, “DRAKE, WE ARE LEAVING!!!”
The aerial attack by the winged dinosaurs was outstanding. (I don’t know the difference between pterodactyls and pteranodons. Besides, one of them looked like it had a T-Rex head, and I’m not sure that was even was a thing.) The plight of one plucked victim was pretty damn creative and horrifying — I think that entire sequence was an example of some pretty inspired horror filmmaking.
And all of those things are good, because I honestly don’t think this film has much going for it without them. This really is … pretty much the same story as “Jurassic Park” (1993).
Smart people do stupid things. I got a “C” in biology freshman year, but even a guy like me immediately doubts the wisdom of the Raptor Recruiting Plan. I also have no military experience, but I know what “cover” is, and I know what a “kill zone” is, and I wouldn’t rush from the former to stand stationary in the latter.
Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas HowAboutADrinkLater are both very good actors; this movie’s script has them rattling off humorous lines that are typical of a mediocre sitcom. The character concept for Pratt’s hunky-extreme-sportsman-naturalist raptor-whisperer is kind of silly. Bryce Dallas HowDoYouJustKeepGettingPrettier plays another stock character — the uptight corporate princess who needs to be taken down a notch. Their banter is like the dialogue of a lackluster episode of “Friends,” and it insults the viewers’ intelligence.
The movie’s two most interesting characters are the two young brothers. Their dialogue was actually touching — this movie would be far better it had focused almost entirely on them. (And, yes, that is young Ty Simpkins from “Insidious.”)
I keep seeing articles on the Internet alleging that the technology depicted by these movies will soon be possible, but I pretty much don’t believe anything I read on the net anymore. Because I totally bought into that Mars One fiasco, and now I feel like an idjit.
“The suffering of the hour translates to the art of tomorrow.”
— Dennis Villelmi
“A word of sorts on my craft,” by Dennis Villelmi
Anyone ever see lightning outside and think of the Dean Koontz novel of the same name?
Damn, that was a fun book.
And some see Phil Spector. Even if they don’t want to.
Thank you, Jaine Sirieys, for sharing this! 🙂 (Nobody crack that “Why so Sirieys?” joke, because I sprang that one on her already, and she’s heard it before anyway.)
She should have died hereafter;
There would have been a time for such a word.
— To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury
Signifying nothing.
from William Shakespeare’s “Macbeth”
Photo: “Elisabeth Ney – Lady Macbeth – Detail,” by Ingrid Fisch at the German language Wikipedia. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
I’m smiling tonight because I just reconnected with one of my coolest friends in New York — artist Margaret Eigner. I’ve seen Margaret in action; it’s amazing what she is able to sketch at the drop of a hat. She’s also an extremely intelligent person, with a seemingly instinctive understanding of Constitutional issues. If you aspire to be a civil libertarian, then you can learn a lot from a friend like her. (I know I have.)
Below is one of her latest drawings. (It’s untitled.) She says she’s considering a webcomic — if she posts it, then I’ll be following it and linking to it here.
If the story of Iphigenia interests you, then so will the essays of blogger and independent author Francis James Franklin.
He has what looks like a truly inclusive knowledge of Greek mythology, as well as a visible love for it.
His observations about Iphigenia can be found here:
Rest easy, Christopher Lee.
I honestly had no idea that the newly passed thespian had so strong a following among modern horror, fantasy and science fiction fans. Many, many people are lamenting his loss today.
The poet Dennis Villelmi (who else?) posted this incredible performance by Lee of that old Gothic chestnut, Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven.”
This might be the best rendition of the poem that I have ever heard. Yes, that includes even the well loved reading by James Earl Jones and the reading by Christopher Walken (which was played straight and was quite good, despite his vocal idiosyncrasies). Seriously, this might be my favorite.
This is a perfect example of Lee’s legendary talent.
Eric Robert Nolan, Author 