:: The Every So Often When I Decide to Post Blog ::

:: Thursday, February 27, 2003 ::

For every Season....

This is prolly the most annoying Winter I've spent in Springifeld. Last year we had one snow fall and it didn't even stick. Course that's a bit odd. But even still with the 8 inches we got last week and the 2 more last night Springifeld is a veritble Canada tundra. More snow tonight. Than perhaps we'll get to 40 degree weather this weekend.

In other news, I bought a new computer the specs look a little like this.

Order detail - order placed 2/25/2003 3:54:42 PM

Dimension™ 2350, Intel® Celeron® Processor at 1.70GHz
3.5 in Floppy Drive
2-button scroll mouse
CD or DVD Drive 16x Max DVD-ROM Drive
CD or DVD Burner for 2nd bay 4x DVD+RW/+R Drive w/CD-RW
Sound Card Integrated Audio
Security Software Dell SecurityCenter by McAfee, 90-day introductory offer
Limited Warranty, Services and Support Options 2 Year Limited Warranty plus 2 Year At-Home Service
Bundled Software WordPerfect® Productivity Pack with Quicken New User Edition
Operating System Microsoft® Windows® XP Home Edition¹²
Memory 256MB DDR-SDRAM
Monitor 17in (16.0 viewable,.25dp)M782 Monitor
Keyboard Dell® Quietkey® Keyboard
Digital Music Dell Jukebox powered by MUSICMATCH
Speakers Harman Kardon® HK-395 Speakers with Subwoofer
Hard Drive 30GB Value Hard Drive
Network Interface Integrated 10/100 Ethernet
Digital Photography Dell Picture Studio Image Expert Standard
Modem 56K PCI Data/Fax Modem
Mail-in Rebate Save $100 with mail-in rebate. Price shown before rebate
Video Card Integrated Intel® Extreme 3D Graphics

Whoopee. Should ship monday. I sold my old computer. so that's about half the cost plus a hundred dollar rebate.

And now, here's you moment of Zen.

http://www.msnbc.com/news/878116.asp?0cv=CB21

:: Matt 1:19 PM [+] ::
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V-Day

I've been celebrating the last several years an Anti Valentines Day. This was year 3. I last month decided that I would go out with two of my friends, both girls, it's worth adding, and we as single individuals would celebrate an anti V-day. How fun. Drinks and good food. Nakato. One of those Japense cook in front of you places. Well wouldn't you know they've gone and gotten themselves all hooked up. So alot of tonight was basically how they were getting laid at some close to the present date.

So I went to Fridays to hang out with my bartender friends. Nothing as depressing as sitting alone on V-day at your local bar.

Should have suspected it.

Matt


:: Matt 2:33 AM [+] ::
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24

I should add that I've spent the last week or so watching the breakout series from last year 24. It's a great piece of TV. GO out rent it for a week and watch it anytime you've got time getting up getting dressed. And watched 24 hours of great TV. It's faboo.

This, Seinfeld, the Simpsons and The West Wing are all wishes for owned on DVD. My sis has 24, I own the first 2 seasons of Simpsons. Lots more money to drop coming my way.

MG
:: Matt 1:16 AM [+] ::
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Sundance ended great.

Three more days of movies including another full day at the Eccles.

But the final days zip by. Next thing you know we're all saying good bye we've missed the Super Bowl and I'm sharing a final beer with my Wisconson friend, Rachel, at the airport.

Ahhhhhhhhhh.

The movies were great the time was well spent and I'm sure I'll head back next year.

Someday I'll discuss the rest of the movies I saw. But I have other things to discuss this three weeks and I know some of them relate to my current life which is odd now.

Valentines Day is coming. I'm working out. Movie stuff may be happening and Ping Pong is my new favorite game. Oh and I'm a bartender. What three weeks can do.

Check this out. Movies are better with Nudity. It's Jeff and my new web page where we discuss films. This week. The Recruit.

Someday.... I will write again. Prolly this weekend. Plenty will need to be said by then.

MG
:: Matt 12:42 AM [+] ::
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Just on the off hand you're bored by all this damn Sundance stuff here's something that'll interest you movie buffs.

http://www.msnbc.com/news/863471.asp

It's awesome.

Matt


:: Matt 3:48 AM [+] ::
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Day 9

I should mention the wacky drinking laws here in Mormon dominated Utah. Firstly, with the exceptions of Private clubs the only Beer you're getting anywhere is 3.3 (though one kind I bought turned out to be 4.0.) In a restaraunt you're only getting drinks with food. You can go to state run liquor stores for your hard liquors. You have to joing a "private club" or really a bar to drink anywhere but a restraunt. You can buy by the year or get a 2 week pass or you just have to go in with someone who belongs. If you are from out of town you can easily be set up with someone who you "get to know."

In the 7-11 (or the S' Levens as we Sundancers call it) they had I think the best named beer I've ever seen in my life. Polygmy Porter. Hilarious.

So today I saw two films.
:: Matt 10:47 PM [+] ::
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Day 8

I had planned on seeing William H Macy in "Cooler" but unfortunately I felt sleep was far more necessary. It was about Mcy's character who was working off a gambling debt in a Vegas casino as a cooler. Basically by his very sad prescense people on a winning streak would suddenly cool off. Great idea I know it was picked upso I'm looking forward to seeing it again someday.

So I went to the noon show in a movie called "American Splendor." Which was absoulutely great. The story of Harvey Peker. He's the creator of the comic book American Splendor. Problem is... he can't draw. So he hooks up with well known cartoonist R. Crumb, who was a friend, and they churn out the comic. Other artists also drew this book but Crumb was the most famous. So the movie about sad man about town Harvey played atoundingly by on of my favorite underrated acotrs Paul Giamatti and meeting Crumb and his wife played beautifully by Hope Davis who due to two great films at Sundance I am now in love with.

Now despite the great performances the way I know how good these acotrs are is that they also filmed interviews with the real Harvey Pekar and his wife. Their in the film! And Harvey Narrates. The use of filmed stuff, interviewed stuff and ever some cartoon stuff makes this film a feast. Just incredible. And for the record this film went on to win the The Dramatic Grand Jury Prize. It really is terrific it's an HBO iflm so if nothing else HBO will air it though I know it's looking for theatrical release.

So then I went to work. Tonight those who have worked the festival in past years said this is single handedly the nuttiest night in rememberance. Masked and Anonymous" was the name of the movie and who as part of the movie showed up. Well, for starters Bob Dylan. Then Peneople Cruz sans boyfriend. Val Kilmer Christian Slater, Jessica Lange and Peter Coyote. People were scalping tickets, which by the way is legal in Utah, and the crowd was crazy. 20 minutes later a small stream of people start coming out which continues for the rest of the film. Apparently it's not good.

Home. Sleep.

:: Matt 10:35 PM [+] ::
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Day 7

This is an odd day for Sundancers. It seems like it's taken forever to get to this point. Halfway through we've been here a week our bodies or only now half way through what most locals consider the "get used to" stage of being 7000 feet in altitude. But oddly from here in out the rest of the fest flies by. Next thing you know you're home. It's odd. this is the second year in a row Day7 to day 12 flew by.

Anyway Saw an odd pick tonight. We were busy as all heck tonight. People not as rude. We're getting better at this or at least they are.

Saw Northfork tonight. Just strange and odd and wonderful and sucky all at the same time. If you ever want to learn how to shoot a film watch this film. Every scene is beautiful too look at. This on the other hand doesn't mean it made sense. Something to do with Angels and lost hope and death. Great and bad at the same time.

Day 7.
:: Matt 2:11 AM [+] ::
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Day 6: A Day at the Eccles

This is the theare I worked at. Click here to see a pic. The Eccles shopwed mostly premieres which was why I got to see all the big stars. But this isn't where to see your truly independent films. I could launch into a whole tirade about how Sundance is not as independant as it once was and how it's gotten away from it's roots. Here's how the NY TIMES put it.

LEAD PARAGRAPH - After last year's Sundance Film Festival, when the crowds were sparse and the films were wanting, this year's installment has been a boisterous, traffic-choked return to the days when Sundance epitomized a certain kind of raw, scruffy cool. At the same time, it also showed signs, troubling to many Sundance veterans, of becoming an increasingly important Hollywood marketing tool.

But as I like my Sundance expierence I'll just send people to smaller fests.

SO I got off work at three to see The Slama Hayek movie. Her Q&A pic. No it's really her I was just far away and my digital camera has no zoom. But that's her. Her directoral Debut. Not bad really. The stary was kinda lacking in a few places i.e. it slowed down but she kept our interest. Her tag line for the movie was to "Show the miracles in us everyday." That's cheesey but sums up the movie quite well.

Dinner.

Back to see "The Shape of Things." My Friend, Bryan, directed this last year here in Springfield as a play. A great show. So I was interested in seeing this film adaption directed by the playwright, Neil LaBute, using the original London cast. Paul Rudd stars with Rachel Weisz in this great movie that twists your arm at the end till you hurt. Needless to say the company scores in this one with Fred Weller and Gretchen Mol filling out the other two smaller roles. LaBute as one might imagine brings this stage play to the screen with great skill so much so that you never even realize that there are only FOUR people speaking the whole time. The end credits has only four people listed. That's a first. Anyway the skill with which LaBute wrote this story and his handeling of it is just great and advise everyone to see it.

LaBute's Q&A afterwards was fantastic a really witty guy and Paul Rudd too. I have this so if anyone ever wants to see it I actually recorded this one.

The home for some beer and Conan.


:: Matt 4:46 PM [+] ::
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Day 5

What can I say about Day 5. Early to work. More pushy people. Sometimes you just got to let them in. There's about 4 excuses that will get you by a crowd laison at Sundance. #1 I have to pick up tickets at will call. #2 With tears in your eyes say you have to go to the bathroom. This especially works for women. #3 You want to buy a t-shirt or coffee. #4 My firends have a ticket inside.

You can't really stop these people. I mean you can but not without a five. I could get a manager involved but then it becomes a whole new thing.

Anyway I sleep in the afternoon. Last night was one of those nights of no sleep. The Pull out bed was so uncomfortable I actually slept on the couch cushions on the bed. It was pretty irrtating. Luckily all my roommates have gotten to the point where they are exhausted as I am and pretty much sleep when I need to. It sucks being on the couch.

I saw Die, Mommie, Die tonight. This movie stars Charlie Busch (based on his stage play) plays a female lead about a former child star who wasn't as good as her sister. Together they were great but as solo artist the other excelled. A lot of gay humor in this movie which isn't a bad thing except that it didn't have the class of a lot of other of Busch's humor. Too many big dick jokes (mostly in reference to Jason Preistly's character who was pretty funny himself) The movie worked from time to time for only two reasons. Busch's character was played straight (so to speak) Although a female character the inside joke was it's a man being a women but as far as everyone IN the movie was concerned she was who she was. And those moments were funny the soft focus close ups. WHich is what else worked in the film. The cinematography. It was camp and they played it like a odd sixties style film. Shot like Pillow Talk or one of those cheeky movies. I wanted to like it but the bad humor and a slight TOO toungu and cheek made it play flat.

Ah well.
:: Matt 4:11 PM [+] ::
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