At the moment, all I can think of how spraining my ankle in the spring screwed up my summer, how taking advantage of short term job fucked me over, and how my partner's new job leaves her with little energy to do much else in the evening or on weekends. These are all negatives but they're what comes to mind first.
So, let's go through some positives.
I went on a trip this summer, which was nice, but I took other stresses (individual and work-related) with me so it wasn't as awesome as it could have been.
I wasn't as strap for money this summer as I thought I would be, which was nice.
I don't know. I guess 2015 wasn't my best year, which is fine. I just need to learn from it and work on getting my head in the right space to be a better version of myself.
Good Stuff
Ms. Marvel (comics)
Lazarus (comics)
Courtney Barnett - Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit (music)
So... Here's a poorly written blog post from 2005 where I doing a poor job of expressing what would later become the manic pixie dream girl theory. Re-reading myself, I come off at the very least problematic and at the worst incredibly sexist. I was a naive and a little off with the "girl's don't make mix tapes like that" point. What I was trying to get at was the scenario seemed... unlikely? No, that's not right. Elizabethtown went against everything I had experienced as a young person dealing with others in those semi-romantic/more-than-platonic-friends situations. There was a lot about Clair (Kirsten Dunst's character) that seemed unrealistic to me, but specifically the commanding taste in music. I realize now I lacked the necessary language to express my thoughts without sounding like a jackass. I think it's the "... and she's pretty to boot" part that makes me cringe the most. What does how she looks like have to with anything relevant? Or is it relevant to everything since it's in the context of a Hollywood movie that exploits her femininity? I'm unsure. If I'm being kind to my younger self, I saw some part of this and just filtered it through the lens of the music selection. If I'm not, I was just another sexist 20-something boy who couldn't imagine a woman applying a vast knowledge of music and history to create what in my mind was a work of genius.
Maybe I'm making things worse. I don't know if I have all the tools necessary to express myself properly without coming off like an ass. I fully admit that I have under examined my privilege concerning gender issues. I've been called out about this in the past. It's difficult to confront but I'm trying.
What happens if the best movie I saw this year wasn't released this year? What if, as I write this post, I can't recall a single movie I saw this year that made me go "Whoa..."? So these are just a short description of the movies I enjoyed.
I haven't seen 12 Years A Slave, Wolf of Wall Street, or American Hustle (saw American Hustle. It was funny but nothing super special).
Pacific Rim - giant robots fighting giant monsters but with good character development as well? That's a good formula. My partner really like this movie.
Gravity - First movie I've ever seen where I've been impressed by the 3D effects. Usually having to put the 3D glasses over my regular glasses isn't worth it. Very imaginative story.
Searching for Sugar Man - Excellent documentary. Good music and a heartwarming story.
Thor The Dark World - Liked it better than all the other superhero movies that came out this year.
World's End - I know I enjoyed it but I can't think of anything constructive to say about it. The story and actors were all good.
So there's the short list. Might add more to it if I anything comes to mind.
I'm official a volunteer with an organization that runs hikes and other outdoor events around Toronto. I'm excited and can't wait to get started. Hopefully this will lead to a more active lifestyle.
I just finished my summer course and biggest thing I took away was how to more effectively use online learning, especially finding a website we can use with my clients. So my goal for the rest of the summer is to get a short package together. It's probably a better use of my time than last summer's creation of a guide to using Excel.
Also seen all the superhero movies this summer. Here are my one line reviews of them
Iron Man 3 - Once again Marvel takes a surprise turn with their franchise by letting writer/director Shane Black use the large action pieces to tell a humanizing story about Tony Stark.
Man of Steel - I've seen all the horrible superhero movies (Daredevil, Green Latern, Blade 3, Any Punisher movie) and this one left the worst taste in my mouth because it betrayed the defining characteristic of the hero the most.
The Wolverine - Aside from a bad ending, this was a strong rebound from the previous entry (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) and final X-Men movie that hopefully means the next movie will be good.
Didn't think I was doing watching lots of movies, but it seems like I am. Also recently saw Pacific Rim, This is the End, Fast & Furious 6, Star Trek Into Darkness, and Much Ado About Nothing.
Yesterday was Family Day, a newly created statutory holidays here in Ontario. I think this is the third or fourth year. What it's meant to me before this year was an extra day off, which is always nice (even if it's in the middle of February). Yesterday was different. Yesterday I saw Good Day to Die Hard with my father while my girlfriend attended my sister's bridal shower. So this it was all about family.
I've been watching bad action movies, including the original Die Hard, with my father as long as I can remember. It's the thing we did as a kid. I watched Top Gun, all the Star Wars movies, Raiders of the Lost Ark, American Ninja II: The Confrontation, Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan, Rambo III, Commando, and various other 80s action movies of varying quality. Lots of movies tape off television (like the animated Return of the King, which included several absolutely horrible musical numbers). There are more but these are the ones I remember at the moment. Well, these were some of the ones we owned. We also rented a lot, but we weren't allowed to rent the same movie twice. When I was really young (like five or six) I could only watch these movies with my dad. I sometimes wonder about this parenting decision, but I turned out already so it doesn't matter.
So yeah, seeing a bad action movie reminds me of my childhood.
The CBC is broadcasting Mission: Impossible III, the one directed by J J Abrams. I know I saw this movie in the theatre but I can't remember a single detail about it. This bothered me (that I didn't remember it) for a while, especially since I couldn't find it on Netflix (but Ghost Protocols was), and I wasn't interested enough to download it. Now that I'm watching it again I know why I didn't recall the plot - it wasn't very memorable. I mean it's perfectly serviceable movie - well paced, lots of explosions, cool gadgets, etc. It's like those 90s Bond movies - ok but nothing really special. Except M:I 3 doesn't have lots of cheesy puns. Doesn't show how good Abrams would be in the future.
This is what I do with my Saturday nights when I'm home sick with a cold that has basically ruined my entire winter holidays.
So now I'm trying to recall other movies I know I've seen because I was really excited to see when they original came out but now can't remember a thing about them aside from very general details. Not surprisingly this is difficult to do.
So the year's list of stuff I liked is going to be very short. Over the last couple of days I've been trying to remember what's really caught my attention and there hasn't been a lot. But here we go. Also, this is my list is going to be an all-media list. And the order isn't what I loved the most except for #1.
1. The Avengers
So, I loved this movie. It's everything I wanted in a superhero movie. By having all the origin stories out of the way, Joss Whedon could focus on solely assembling the team and setting up a fantastic alien-invading-New-York finale. That's not to say there wasn't any character development or complex humour because there was. It just the kind of comic book movie experience I was looking for.
2. Saga by Brian K. Vaughan (writer) & Fiona Staple (artist)
When this is announced, it piqued my curiosity. A new series from the creator of Runaways and Y the Last Man... seems like a sure thing. I didn't know Staple`s work before but after doing some back bin diving, I've found that I enjoy her work. This series is an excellent science fiction adventure, a space opera akin to Star Wars. I have no idea where it`s heading but I`m sure as hell enjoying the ride.
3. The Dark Knight Rises
Great ending to the trilogy. I was more inclined to see the faults in this film than the Avengers which is why I like the Avengers better. Don't have much else to say that wouldn't sound like nitpicking fanboy stuff so I'll just leave at "I liked it but it was flawed."
This album is just a good time. Reminds me of what I like about music because it was energetic, catchy, and fun. Might be that in a year I won't be as fond of this album as I am right now. Oddly enough, I don't have any real desire to see these guys live. Makes me wonder...
5. Moonrise Kingdom
Wes Anderson started making movie when I was in high school but I saw them in university. Those movies (Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, etc) fit right in with how I saw the world. Also, the musical references he made lead to many discoveries of, mostly, music I hadn't heard of. But I'm getting off track. I liked this movie. It did everything I wanted it to do and a little bit more. Excellent performances and a little hooky.
6. The Walking Dead (TV series)
I've read the Walking Dead comic books and I like the television series better. It's just personal preference. Both are good, but the series handles certain plot points better than the comics. This season, or at least the first half, has corrected many of the problems of the second season. The tempo is quick, situations are dealt within three episodes, and the special effects has been stellar. I watched two episodes back-to-back and I nearly had a heart attack because it was so suspenseful and tense. Hoping for more of the same in the new year.
7. Wolverine & the X-Men by Jason Aaron (writer) & Various Artists
As a kid I loved X-Men comics. Wasn't a huge fan of the cartoon because the character did feel or sound right. I still watched it but it never sat right with me. Over the years I've continue to read the X-Men comics, but often I found they weren't very interesting, especially the "core" books. Wolverine and the X-Men renewed my love of the X-Men, mainly by reintroducing the idea of the school. Aaron's take on the relationship and school dynamics is new and interesting. And issue #17 drawn by Mike Allred was probably one of my favourite single issues of the year.
8. The Score by Darwyn Cooke
Cooke is a master cartoonist. The Score is an adaption of the Parker novel of the same name. Cooke doesn't update the setting/technology/etc and really doesn't change anything except to include his buddies has references for some of the minor characters. What I liked about it was the simplicity - not overdrawn, tri-colouring (black, white, & different hues of yellow), great pacing, etc - Cooke's Parker adaptions are a master class in what it means to make great graphic novels.
Sweet Jesus I enjoyed this record. The production, lyrics, and delivery are first rate. My favourite track is Reagan (music video) not only because it reminds of good Public Enemy but also because it packs a mean left hook. This year seems to be the year that hipsters caught on to the awesomeness of R&B and Rap as evident by how much love Frank Ocean & Kendrick Lemar are getting [and rightly so].
10. Skyfall
I've seen many James Bond movies. Not all of them but many. Skyfall is one of the best. They take the best bits of the first two Daniel Craig films and just adding to it. It's visually stunning and Craig's Bond is even more vulnerable and human than any of the previous Bonds and well... that's just a much more interesting tale.
11. Justice League Dark by Peter Milligan, Jeff Lemire (writers) and Mikel Janin (artist)
Justice League Dark is a great concept but what does it for me is the artwork of Mikel Janin. But first, the concept - a team of DC superhero that deal solely with the magical threats to the universe. Bring back John Constantine to the mainstream DCU was good idea but cancelling Hellblazer is one of the worse decisions of the decade. |But back to Janin's art. His style is clean (might be due to using digital techniques) and constructs a page well. Janin isn't on the cutting edge but he got solid storytelling skills.
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There were four other things I liked but I don't feel like writing anymore about these things. It would be just more of the same (it's really good, I liked it, and basically good example of the media). So here are the final four things, which would bring
I'm watching Snow White and the Huntsman. It's not terribly good. That's about all I can say about it. I'd probably like a little better if I had seen in theatres. I'm always distracted when watching movies at home. I know there are many articles and rants about good films to watch on our TV and many more discussions about films you'd watch to the end whenever you caught them playing on cable.
I find it difficult to pick stuff on Netflix. Too many options available all the time. I spend more time scrolling through the covers than actually watching anything (except when I've started a TV series. Then I go there specifically to watch that. It's why I like HBO and TMN (the pay movie channels in Eastern Canada). You don't pick what's on but you can choose to watch what's on.
Because of the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), Sleepwalk With Me hasn't been released in Toronto yet (or at least that's what I'm choosing to believe). I really want to see it. The twitter, social media, online campaign has peaked my curiosity. Damn you, Ira Glass. You win again. If I can't see that movie this weekend, I'll likely watch Dread 3D.Those are the same, right?
The Avengers was awesome. I saw it Opening Night and then again yesterday because it was that good. I can't remember the last time I wanted to see a movie twice in the theater. I've always been more of a Marvel than DC fan so I'm excited that the Avengers worked. It was everything that you'd want in a blockbuster comic book movie. I don't know how much more I want to say since there's been TONS of coverage. It is, after all, the easily most successful film of the decade. Maybe ever.
So I'm very excited for the new Avengers movie (official site if you dare). I am not, however, terribly excited about the new Avengers comic book called, appropriately, Avengers Assemble. It's the FOURTH Avengers comic that Marvel is publishing monthly, three of which are written by the same person. I was bored by the first issue but it's difficult to judge an entire series by the first issue. Like great bands, it often takes time for the creative team to find their rhythm. Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley are an excellent team who should already have a rhythm because there are the current record holders for long continuous collaboration on Ultimate Spider-Man (FYI Bagley doesn't pull punches when discussing his career).
I've also been floating the idea of doing a podcast where I discuss a comic book series that I loved in my youth. I have two series in mind but I don't know if I should mention which ones just in case someone steals my idea. Yes, I realize the likelihood of someone stealing my idea is a little ridiculous but better safe than sorry. Most likely nobody will listen to me rant about my favourite superhero comic books but it'll give me something to do once my contact is up at my current employer.
So the original Police Academy was on television this morning. The movie is almost 30 years old (released in 1984) it was shot in Toronto. I noticed this mostly in the climatic riot scene at the end of the movie. The riot scenes were shot in Kensington Market. The place still looks the same. I find a little bit of comfort in this. The movie, however, hasn't aged well. I remember liking this series as a kid but not so much anymore. It's pretty crazy.
Also, the Blue Oyster bar was the Silver Dollar Room. That's strange.
Saw the Green Hornet in 3D on Monday. Wanted to see it because of the director (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) and I enjoyed the old series (come on, Bruce Lee as Kato). I was sadly disappointed. It certainly wasn't your usual superhero movie but parts of the movie didn't go anywhere. The fresh rating was around 50% and that's about how good it was.
This was also my first experience with the new REAL 3D that all blockbusters are being released in. I wasn't impressed. First, not all the scenes were in 3D so I'm wearing these glasses for no reason, which hurt my eyes. I wasn't impressed. Maybe I should have seen Avatar or Tron Legacy before.
So, does anyone else care about the new Buffy the Vampire Slayer movie they're making? Seems that the creator doesn't. Me, I'm unsure. Why wouldn't you include the still-living creator? Seriously. Looks like a cash grab.
Just saw the new Harry Potter movie. It was okay. A little long with lots of set-up for the next movie but otherwise a good time. Best part? The Nick Cave song. It's fun to think of all the kiddies (and their parents) searching out Nick Cave because he was in this ultra-mainstream movie. Best of luck to him.
I'm going to Pittsburgh this weekend. Going to the Andy Warhol Museum, the Cargenie Arts Museum & Natural Histroy Museum, and Jerry's Records. Guess what I'm most excited about.
Also, SCOTT PILGRIM opens this weekend. I'm going to see a movie set in Toronto, about Toronto, and featuring so much Canadiana it hurts in an American city. FTW?
The Oscars are on tonight. Probably going to watch. Really want Inglorious Basterds to win everything but it probably won't. Just saw Crazy Heart. It was a pretty good movie with a talented lead actor and a very good soundtrack. Haven't see Avatar and don't plan on seeing it. Too much hype.
So that's about as close as I'll get to predicting what's going to win. I have my favourites but I don't always believe they'll actually win. I'll order pizza and try to enjoy the show.
Geez... one of my favourite movie theatres in the city is closing tomorrow. I can't count the number of foreign, indie, and just plain weird movies I've seen at this tiny theatre. It was a second run theatre. It kept good films longer than the standard two weeks, giving people a chance to actually see something. One of the advantages of where I was moving to was that it was just a two blocks from my new place. ARGH! Foiled again...
This old, but very shiny, truck was parked in front a local, independent grocery store on Queen Street East just past Kingston Rd. As you can see, there was a large pile of Ontario corn. Didn't buy any (had our share of corn a couple of weeks ago) but this was very eye catching. While taking this picture, an old man commented to me that he'd do the same if he had a camera on him.
Also saw Inglorious Basterds. Both UFC and I really enjoyed it. Probably as good as Kill Bill or Death Proof. If you've read any positive reviews they all say pretty much the same thing and it's all true. It was ten dollars well spent.
Day 4 of my summer vacation was slightly unremarkable. Best part of the day was buying a new coffee table.
Yesterday was the grand finale. I took UFC up to Kawartha Lakes area of Ontario. I've spent many summers in that area, so I took UFC to see where many fond memories were created. It rained all day but that didn't ruin our day. We saw everything we wanted to see, especially the Highland Theatre in Kinmount. Only open in during the summer months, this six screen theatre has been run for 30 years from a building attached to the owner's home. It's one of the greatest places to see a movie because the love of cinema is everywhere. The halls are a museum with cameras, memorabilia, and posters celebrating 100 years popular culture. And the prices are very reasonable. I suggest taking any movie lover to this theatre. It's a strange experience but a great one nonetheless.
