May 2011 Screening Log

01 Tonight we're going to The Intelligent Homosexual's Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures by Tony Kushner (Angels in America) off broadway. Two nights ago we were all wishing Kushner had just called it Intelligent Homosexuals just for the odd conversational fragments  it would prompt

'what are you doing tonight?'
'Oh, we're going to see Intelligent Homosexuals!'

02-16 OOPSIE. FORGOT ABOUT THIS. AND DIDN'T NOTICE ANYONE READING THE SCREENING LOGS. Uh, I saw some things. Like... Thor, Pirates of the Caribbean: The One With The Mermaids, Bridesmaids and a few DVD offerings like Matador.

17 A couple of episodes of True Blood. I'm almost caught up for Season 4. Nobody on this show ever goes to the gym. They are constantly drinking beer and eating things like burgers and fries. The only exercize they get is sex. How do they stay so fit with zero body fat and rippling abs? Even the women have six packs.

Also saw ISHTAR at 92nd Street Y and Elaine May was interviewed afterwards. So funny. Both the woman and the movie; it's rep as a disaster is entirely unearned.
18-27 Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris, 1932's Tarzan the Ape Man, Norman Jewison's adaptation of the musical Jesus Christ Superstar (1973) and the Broadway production of The Normal Heart. (I liked the revival a few years ago starring Raul Esparza better.)
28 Norman Jewison's MOONSTRUCK (1987) which so should have won Best Picture at the Oscars. It holds up so so well, extremely funny and warm.
29-31 a nostalgia filled weekend with Adventures in Babysitting, The Rescuers and MOULIN ROUGE! And also The Other Woman. Blech. more on each soon.

April 2011 Screening Log

1 Too busy having nervous breakdown to watch movies.  Went to bed early, comatose.
2 WEEKEND (2011) the gay film that won SXSW. It's part of the Nashville Film Festival as well. Good stuff.
3 Third episode of Mildred Pierce. Watched the slapping scene with Vida and the sex scene with Guy Pearce twice. I'm only human. But the part of the episode that I loved loved loved was Mare Winningham taking control in the restaurant.
4-5 Watched the season finale of No Ordinary Family and dear god let it also be a series finale because I can't stop watching this show and it's not even a guilty pleasure because it's straight up T-E-R-R-I-B-L-E from the writing to the acting to the. argh. put it down. put it down. Also watched RuPaul's Drag Race which continues to delight.

6 HEAVENLY CREATURES (1994) for the Hit Me With Your Best Shot episode.
7 Watched the trailer for Crazy Stupid Love an embarassing amount of times. Later that night started to watch Bride Wars (2009) and quickly said to self: "self, what are you doing? what-what-what are you doing?" Instead put in a screener for a French Canadian Nashville Fest movie called CURLING. Which was odd to say the least.
8 SOURCE CODE and ARTHUR which I reviewed.
9 POTICHE with Catherine Deneuve. I'm telling you. Just seeing her fills my heart with joy... and the factory goods they were producing? Hilarious in-joke. Fun movie. Also: Depardieu is now gargantuan. We're talking legendary Brando sized weight gain.
10 Watched the finale of Mildred Pierce in which Kate's performance really did improve and Evan Rachel Wood totally turned it out and up. And then Sex and the City 2. I really didn't mean to watch it again as it's not a "good" movie abut once Carrie starts being her neurotic self in sky high shoes in all the colors of the rainbow I have trouble denying her. 

11 Penultimate RuPaul's Drag Race Season 3 episode. Byebye Yara. It's Raja, Manila & Alexis for the finale. Rooting for Raja or Manila but Alexis has had her moments.
12 An amnesia mystery called PIG, a Canadian comedy called WHIRLIGIG and a first feature from Sam Jaeger from TV's Parenthood who wrote, directed and starred in it called TAKE ME HOME, a road trip dramedy co-starring his wife. It's actually pretty good.
13 nada. having depression today. it happens. But I'm about to leave to see "Catch Me If You Can" on Broadway so hopefully that'll cheer me up. UPDATE: It was good. I briefly buzzed it at Towleroad.
14 The Summer of Goliath, another film I needed to watch for my Nashville jury. Now I can attend the festival and just see whatever I want :)
15 South Pacific on my laptop on the plane. No, I don't know why. Bali Hi possessed me?
16 Sons of Tennessee Williams, a Southern gay civil rights doc and One Lucky Elephant, the story of an orphaned elephant raised by a circus ringmaster (discussed here). This was a big movie day as I also finished the two remaining features I needed to see for the jury deliberations: The Last Summer of La Boyita an interesting coming of age film from Argentina about two kids entering adolescence and Septien which is difficult to describe. Next!
17 I hadn't heard anything about Aardvark or Stranger Things going in but I liked them both. Ended the evening with the documentary Project NIM from the man who directed Man on Wire. The crowd seemed to love it. We also had our jury meeting for the Narrative competition. The decisions were not entirely easy but for Best Picture. We all agreed on the same two films being ahead of the pack so they easily took Best Pic and Honorable Mention. But more on that later.
18 Nénette (discussed here) and The Arbor.
19 Business/Travel day.

20 Back in NYC. Yay! Regular posting/blogging to resume Thursday I'm sure. Need day to unwind / plan.
21 A Walk on the Moon selections.
22 Friday Night Lights is back. Whoooooo
23 Water for Elephants -- even convinced three of my friends who always turn movies down to join me. Here's my review.
24 Ratatouille (2007) It holds up. It's still a spectacular nervy combo of appetizing (food) and revolting (rats). Maybe it's slightly overappreciated (as many Pixar's are) but damn if that ratatouille serving finale with Anton Ego isn't one of the best climaxes in any animated film. And it doesn't even need a "chase" sequence. Also watched Game of Thrones episode 2. We should discuss but let's wait until episode 3 hits.
25 RuPaul Drag Race finale

26-28 I really must keep better track. At some point in here we watched Tacwaquore which was an interesting film on punk rock Muslims.
29 Carol Channing: Larger Than Life at the Tribeca Film Festival. Carol was there! Good Christ she is old (in her nineties now) but she was hilarious about it.
30 Last night we had a fun double feature: TV's Beauty and the Beast (with Linda Hamilton & Ron Perlman) and then the Disney classic. I didn't remember the former at all so it was a flashback to the 80s. My mom was really into that TV show. Television has definitely improved since then.