Summer in the City, Pt. IV (Books)

One of the upsides to a long commute is that every day you have a couple of hours to yourself. No internet, no television, just you and the commute. In cities with comprehensive public transit, you can read on your commute, which I am jealous of daily. In L.A., the best I can do is audiobooks. I'd never read an audiobook before, and surprisingly it didn't take much getting used to. They are expensive though, so I think I'm going to have to start going to the library, which I always forget exists. If only the library worked like Netflix. So here's some books I've read recently -- some audio, some not:

No One Belongs Here More Than You by Miranda July
I bought this on a whim, because Me and You and Everyone We Know, the movie July wrote and starred in, was so interesting, that I wanted to see what she'd done in short stories. This one was an audiobook, and July's voice was surprisingly perfect for every character. Almost all of them melancholy, she transformed to suit different genders and age brackets and levels of sanity, without really putting on different voices. The stories are strange, some are a bit vulgar, and there is a sense of humor and hope even in the sad scenes she depicts.

Always Looking Up: Adventures of an Incurable Optimist by Michael J. Fox
I have loved Michael J. Fox for as long as I can remember. Family Ties, Teen Wolf, the Back to the Future trilogy. I had a crush on him before I knew what a crush was. In high school, I watched Spin City, and wept when he left the show to be replaced by Charlie Sheen. I read his first autobiography Lucky Man as if I were reading a loved one's diary. Always Looking Up is very different than Lucky Man, but a welcome sequel. It focuses primarily on Fox's advocacy for stem cell research and his work to find a cure for Parkinson's. It's an interesting look at his life's work, a calling clearly more fulfilling to him than acting. It's clear that celebrity is a big part of his life, but that he has completed the transition to who he will be remembered as, far more than an adorable Canadian teen actor. (Note: audiobook read by the author himself)

Blankets by Craig Thompson
A coworker recommended this graphic novel to me, and I really wish someone had told me about it when I was a few years younger. I definitely enjoyed Thomspon's skillfully illustrated memoir, and it would have really struck a chord with me when I was a teenager. As an autobiography, Thompson's story has been heard before. Lonely child grows up poor, in an oppressively religious home, and finds hope when he finds love as a teenager. But his salvation comes through his artwork, his break with Christianity, and his escape from Tinytown. But the drawings are so graceful, his pain and subsequent deliverance drip off the page.

Shakespeare: The World as Stage by Bill Bryson
To date, the only other Bryson book I've read is his Australian travelogue In a Sunburned Country, and as I am currently reading his Shakespeare biography, I am very eager to continue reading his ouevre. I've previously read and enjoyed Stephen Greenblatt's Will in the World, and while Bryson's book covers much of the same information, it approaches it in a different way. Bryson opens the tome by explaining that while the world doesn't need another Shakespeare biography, his collection does. It's clear that Bryson is this curious genius, setting out to know what he can about our world and its history. And it's fun to have him explain what he's learned. Which in the world of Shakespeare, isn't much. The audiobook is read by Bryson himself, and it's like attending a teatime lecture by a friendly professor.

Next up, I've got Louisa May Alcott's classic Little Women on CD. I think for audiobooks, I'm going to be sticking to educational nonfiction and classics, as in all honesty, those would be the hardest for me to get through by reading the traditional method. Speaking of classics, I'm still reading Tolstoy's War and Peace which my boyfriend gave me for Christmas, and I am embarrassingly only about halfway through. I'm enjoying every bit of it, but it is simply not a page-turner.

Summer in the City, Pt. III (TV)

As many of you know, television has long been my beloved mistress, my perfect drug. Now with TiVo, and Netflix instant streaming, my TV consumption really has gotten out of hand. I've done a lot of catching up on older shows, and following summer shows, and I am kind of getting antsy waiting for the fall shows to premiere. As always, thoughts of the many months we must wait before the final season of Lost only serve to distress me. On to happier thoughts:

So You Think You Can Dance (Fox, Wednesdays at 8pm & Thursdays at 9pm)

I've been a fan of SYTYCD since season 2, and I love it no less now than I did then. The dancing is still spectacular, the variety of styles given exposure is admirable, and as a dancer, I just love how inspirational the show is to keep everyone moving to the music. That all said, this season was mostly a dud. Perhaps the show's creators and choreographers were overworked, preparing for the show's first fall season while filming their summer season, but there were not too many stand-out performances - or performers - this year. Mary Murphy is continually a thorn in my side, and the bizarre Katie Holmes interlude was just...off-kilter (or maybe I'm just an SP). I am still looking forward to the fall season though. Can't go wrong with more dance.

True Blood (HBO, Sundays at 9pm)

Obsessed. I have a complicated relationship with the vampire genre of late, but this show is just so ridiculous, I can't get enough. It's a soft-core pornographic soap opera about vampires, created by Alan Ball. What more could anyone ask for? As per uzh, the main characters Bill and Sookie are pretty damn annoying, but the sheer awesomeness of Jessica, Lafayette, and Eric is just so worth it.

Mad Men (AMC, Sundays at 10pm)

This is a show that I have watched exclusively on DVD, so I am just over the moon about being all caught up before the next season premieres next Sunday. It's a wonderful show with a lot of women behind the scenes, and a lot of compelling women on screen as well. Peggy Olson is one of the most interesting characters I've seen in a long time, and I am so eager to see where everyone will pick up after hiatus.

Hung (HBO, Sundays at 10pm)

This one of the couple of shows each season that isn't particularly great, but isn't bad, and I just watch it because it's on. Like Penn & Teller's Bullshit which is just a timefiller. I think Anne Heche is doing a good job on the show, and I'm interested in seeing where Ray and Tanya's relationship goes. Tanya's a refreshing surprise in an otherwise unremarkable new show.

The Secret Life of the American Teenager (ABC Family, Mondays at 8pm)

This show is so, so bad. The acting is bad. The writing is bad. The acting - really, you have to see it. I can't get enough of this horrible horrible show. I have been catching up on DVD, and am one season behind. It is the greatest guilty pleasure of all time. Look at that picture. That bump is a more obvious indicator of farce than a drag queen's Adam's apple.

Summer in the City, Pt. II (Movies)

In all honesty, I haven't gone out to too many movies lately. I'll write about the last few I saw in theaters, and the next ones I'm anticipating, but this is by no means a comprehensive look at the movies of Summer 2009.

Up

What can I say? I remain heartbroken. I saw this in 3D the weekend before starting my new job at an animation studio, and it just took the wind out of me. I loved Wall-E, and saw it twice in theaters, but where the large scope of that movie is what impressed me, it was the intimate poignancy of Up that was stunning. As with everyone else in the world, I was weeping after 10 minutes, and again at the end. I can't go into any details in case anyone hasn't seen it yet. But I will say that two weeks after seeing the movie, I was looking at a billboard for it while stopped at a red light, and I lost it. I cried for an hour. So brilliant.

Away We Go

I enjoyed this movie even more than I anticipated, and I had been looking forward to it quite eagerly. What seemed like a cute, romantic road trip movie was far more affective than I'd expected, and the movie stuck with me long after. The fears and dreams that the main characters had were portrayed so wonderfully in their tight performances, and I felt like I'd want to rewatch this movie when I'm pregnant with my first child, to make me feel better about what I'm sure must be a very scary time. I can't pick a favorite vignette out of the story, but I definitely was impressed by John Krasinski's character. It is so rare to see fatherhood portrayed so admirably in media these days, and I loved how excited he was to be a dad. It was a shock to see what a fulfilling movie Sam Mendes made after Revolutionary Road which was the ultimate suburban horror story.

(500) Days of Summer

While I definitely enjoyed this movie, in a packed cinema at the Arclight, I think I'd overhyped it in the weeks preceding. The music, the non-linear story, the sentiment, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt: all wonderful. Zooey Deschanel was good in her role, but the character of Summer left me ill at ease. I don't think she's a bad person at all, and I completely understand where she's coming from, but I think that Gordon-Levitt's Tom is just so earnest and dimpled and heartwarming that it's hard not to be saddened by the woman who eventually scorns him. Some of the narration was a little off, but the musical set piece, the unorthodox use of animation and split-screen, and the wonderful ode to my love, Los Angeles, all sat very well with me. I think I must be honest though that it was great seeing Cameron from 10 Things I Hate About You show through in some scenes. Charming!

The Hurt Locker

Romance, romance, romance, WAR MOVIE. I'm sure I've blogged previously about my love of war movies, like Three Kings, Black Hawk Down, and The Best Years of Our Lives (which is about what happens after you come home, but is still one of the best war movies I've ever seen). This became one of my dad's favorite movies of recent years, and I have to say I was sucked in from the opening shot, barely able to blink the whole time. The film runs the gamut, showing us how our three main soldiers interact with each other, how they interact with their work and duty, how they interact with the locals, and finally, with their families. The film perfectly sets up the right feeling of dread from the outset, and then slowly needles the tension throughout. I highly recommend this candid and fascinating movie.

Some movies I'm looking forward to seeing in the coming weeks are Julie & Julia, Adam, District 9, and Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs. I should be seeing the first two sometime this week, so I will let you know how I like them!

Summer in the City, Pt. I (Music)

So, as my first action back on the blog, I'm going to do a little catching up on what I've been enjoying this summer. The quickest for me to update you on will be music. For the last five years, I've complained at how lazy I've become with learning about new music. In high school I was obsessed, reading Q, the NME, Rolling Stone, Spin, and various online music publications. I used to stay up until early morning to watch the new, hip music videos on Fuse and MTV2. I'd go to record stores and pick up CDs I'd never heard of based on the employees' recommendations. I don't think a day went by when I was 14, 15, 16, that I didn't listen to some new music.

And then I went to college and this practically all stopped. I don't really know what happened. I was busier, yes, but I spent hours and hours screwing around on the internet, just not looking for new music. The wonderful radio station Indie 103.1 came and went, and I just waited for new music to come my way, on mixtapes by friends usually.

This summer I've found myself listening to a little more new music than I had been doing. Maybe it's because I have a commute that crosses all of L.A., so I stop at Amoeba with some frequency, and it inspires me. Anyway, here's a short list:

Regina Spektor, "Far"

I've loved Regina ever since hearing "Samson" performed a capella by a friend of mine a couple of years ago. I immediately bought everything of hers I could get my hands on. When I saw her perform live at the Wiltern a year or so ago, it was a really remarkable, ethereal show. This summer, her new album quickly became my favorite. Upon my first listen, I knew that it was immensely more enjoyable to me than "Soviet Kitsch" or "Begin to Hope," both of which I love. "The Calculation," "Eet," "Laughing With," and "One More Time With Feeling" instantly became my favorite tracks, and I had them memorized within days. I even called my boyfriend while I was driving home and made him listen to "Eet" with me. I'm going to be seeing her at the Greek Theatre in October, and I think that the kookiness of this album will be on great display at that venue. The religious tones of her work come back with a passion, and her voice...is as mesmerizing as ever.

She & Him, "Volume One"

My enjoyment of "country-fried indie rock" (as I once termed it in an article I wrote for school) came as a surprise to me in high school when the particular stylings of bands like Rilo Kiley and Limbeck were all I wanted to listen to. The lilting twang of Zooey Deschanel's voice fits in perfectly with that, and is left stripped bare with M. Ward's music. I don't like every track on this album, but there's something so desperate in the vocals that I can't seem to get enough. My friends and I even sat through Yes Man to hear Zooey singing. It was not worth it.

Here's a video of Elvis Costello, Jenny Lewis, and Zooey Deschanel on stage. It's like fantasy rock band for me!

The Temper Trap

Okay so I don't know too much about them, but thanks to Ash, I got to see them live at Space Land for free, and they were a really wonderful show. I think the last time I saw a really great small act in a small venue was Everybody Else at the Troubadour in 2005 or so, and they are two very different kinds of bands. The Temper Trap was energetic, and played cleanly, and definitely piqued my interest. They have a song, "Sweet Disposition" featured on the (500) Days of Summer soundtrack, so I'm excited to see what happens for them next.

Death Cab for Cutie at the Bowl

A few weeks ago I got a friend's extra ticket to see DCFC perform with the L.A. Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl. It was a wonderful last minute surprise, though the performance was less impressive than expected. We got there while The New Pornographers were opening, which was a shame because I would have liked to see more of their set. They were quickly followed by Tegan & Sara, who were very talkative and charming, and played a good mix of older and newer music. Death Cab performed one short set solo, again with a good mix of old/new, and then one set backed by the L.A. Phil. Something was just missing though. The sound was off and consequently some of the horns drowned out the rest of the music, and some of the DCFC songs felt at odds with the horde of instruments and the huge venue. Plus, Ben Gibbard seemed to be phoning it in a bit. The general consensus among my friends seems to be that he's happy now that he's engaged to Zooey Deschanel, and can't really bring the angst to his music anymore. In 2004, DCFC performed at the Wiltern, and when they ended the show on "Transatlanticism," the stage filled with yellow light and fog, it felt like I was floating in the air, alone with the music. When they ended the Bowl show on the same note, there were fireworks in the air, and it became a spectacle. In the end, the best part about going to show was being at the Bowl, picnicking in the Hollywood hills and chatting with friends, as it always is.

Spamalot at the Ahmanson

Back in April, I waited in line at the Dorothy Chandler pavilion while Laker girls, wand'ring minstrels, and various Spam-themed games and activities carried on wildly around me. I was queuing up for discounted tickets to the preview shows of Monty Python's Spamalot, in town starring John O'Hurley. I know that the theatre doesn't quite count as "music," but I figured this was as good a place for it as any. Those of us familiar with the Pythons, and The Holy Grail, probably got more enjoyment out of the show than the unitiated. We knew which jokes to expect, but there was enough of a new take on the material to be freshly entertaining. My mom who has no Monty Python experience laughed wildly the whole time, and couldn't believe how crude some of the humor was, so maybe I'm wrong. There were a few little kinks to be worked out (it was in previews, after all), and the faux program in the Playbill was one of the funniest parts of the show, but overall I enjoyed it quite a bit.

That's all I can think of for now. Lately my car's CD player has been playing audiobooks mostly, as it helps more during a long commute than music sometimes does.

Where everybody knows your name...

Apologies are not enough to excuse my protracted absence from posting here. Blogging as Kat Ex Machina has been a very fun and rewarding activity for me over the past couple of years, and I have no answers as to why I stopped. I was doing traveling, going on job interviews, and kind of settling into a bit of a "real life" now that the post-college gap year has come and gone. I'm sure my lull in posting has been more of a disservice to myself than any of my reader(s) -- Hi, Dad! -- but I am going to be making a concerted effort to get back in the habit.

This comes at a time when I'm settled into my new job of two months, and I'm trying to start up again with my writing. Those who know me personally know I have worked on screenplays in the past, and hit a particularly brutal patch of writer's block while on walkabout in Sydney last year. I have picked up the metaphorical pen again, this time with a novel. I don't want to discuss it too much just yet, as it's in the very beginning stages, but it feels good to write again. And writing anything aids in prolificness, so I think the more I blog here, the more my creative juices will be flowing and I'll stick to working on my novel a bit every day.

So here we go again. I am back working in development at a major studio, so I promise to be as "insider" as I can be without spilling any beans I shouldn't. This mostly means I'll just up the self-important tone of my blogs. For the most part, I'm going back to my old format. Movie reviews, TV reviews, and various pop culture discussions pertaining to entertainment. I've changed the template of the blog, and am going to try a few new things to bring a fresh vibe to the place, and hopefully I'll be in a strong stride by the time the fall shows premiere.

Thanks for reading, and tell your friends!

remedial

So, since the release dates here in Australia are so far behind those in the U.S., I've struggled to keep up with all of the award-prone releases these past few months. I'm trying to catch up, but have a lot of ground to cover if I want to have any adequate base of knowledge for this year's Academy Awards. So, in a move that will certainly interest no one, here is my limited opinion on the nominations based on the films I have seen so far. And the nominees are:

Best Picture: “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “Frost/Nixon,” “Milk,” “The Reader,” “Slumdog Millionaire.” Of these, I've only seen Benjamin Button and Slumdog Millionaire, but from what I gather, neither is the front-runner to win. The latter has the feel-good audience-pleasing advantage, but I suspect Milk will take the "not too many people saw this, but the Academy loved to love it" road to the Oscar.

Actor: Richard Jenkins, “The Visitor”; Frank Langella, “Frost/Nixon”; Sean Penn, “Milk”; Brad Pitt, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”; Mickey Rourke, “The Wrestler.” It pleases me greatly that Jenkins got a nod, as I have been a fan of his from the first moment I saw him in the Six Feet Under series premiere, but I still haven't seen The Visitor. There's been a lot a lot of buzz for Langella and Penn, and Pitt has no chance, but my hope/wish is for Rourke. I was stunned by his performance in The Wrestler, but I wonder if voters might think the role was too much of himself? I don't think so.

Actress: Anne Hathaway, “Rachel Getting Married”; Angelina Jolie, “Changeling”; Melissa Leo, “Frozen River”; Meryl Streep, “Doubt”; Kate Winslet, “The Reader.” I'm pretty surprised about the nomination for Hathaway, as I've heard she really shines in no more than one scene/monologue. But, I haven't seen any of these movies and so I really have nothing to say. I really want to see Changeling and Doubt, though.

Supporting Actor: Josh Brolin, “Milk”; Robert Downey Jr., “Tropic Thunder”; Philip Seymour Hoffman, “Doubt”; Heath Ledger, “The Dark Knight”; Michael Shannon, “Revolutionary Road.” I would be over the moon if I thought that Downey had a chance, because his winning would totally make the Oscars for me. It seems like Heath Ledger will score the inevitable posthumous win, but love for Brolin in W might shift over to his performance in Milk, and the Academy loves a "whatshisname." As for me, you all know of my undying love for PSH, so that's where my heart lies.

Supporting Actress: Amy Adams, “Doubt”; Penelope Cruz, “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”; Viola Davis, “Doubt”; Taraji P. Henson, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”; Marisa Tomei, “The Wrestler.” I really want to say that Amy Adams should have won when she was nominated in this category for Junebug in 2006 because I love her, and I loved her in that film. But really, I think Michelle Williams should have won for Brokeback Mountain that year, instead of Rachel "my movie panders to voters' politics" Weisz. That said, I'm happy to cast my favor with her this year, sight unseen. Marisa Tomei was great in The Wrestler, but I don't think her role was that demanding, especially in comparison to Rourke's and even Evan Rachel Wood's.

Director: David Fincher, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”; Ron Howard, “Frost/Nixon”; Gus Van Sant, “Milk”; Stephen Daldry, “The Reader”; Danny Boyle, “Slumdog Millionaire.” I think Boyle might have a chance if his movie doesn't get Best Picture. I'm still upset with Van Sant for the two hours of my life he stole with Elephant, but I think he and Howard are in the lead. We all love David Fincher, and I enjoyed Benjamin Button more than most, but I don't think his movie met expectations that would snag it a win in this big of a category.

Foreign Film: “The Baader Meinhof Complex,” Germany; “The Class,” France; “Departures,” Japan; “Revanche,” Austria; “Waltz With Bashir,” Israel. I usually assume that the one everyone's heard of is the one that wins because everyone hears about the best product, so I'd vote on Waltz With Bashir in an office Oscar pool, knowing nothing about any of these movies.

Animated Feature Film: “Bolt”; “Kung Fu Panda”; “WALL-E.” Come on, now. WALL-E should have been nominated for Best Picture, so it's got to win this one.

Original Score: “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” Alexandre Desplat; “Defiance,” James Newton Howard; “Milk,” Danny Elfman; “Slumdog Millionaire,” A.R. Rahman; “WALL-E,” Thomas Newman. I think WALL-E had a great score, but (see next category) it will probably win for original song, so I really don't know what score is likely to win.

Original Song: “Down to Earth” from “WALL-E,” Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman; “Jai Ho” from “Slumdog Millionaire,” A.R. Rahman and Gulzar; “O Saya” from “Slumdog Millionaire,” A.R. Rahman and Maya Arulpragasam. I think the Academy will hear Peter Gabriel's name and vote right there. I don't know why Springsteen didn't get a nod for "The Wrestler," because then there might have been some competition. Two songs from Slumdog Millionaire will split the vote ensuring that neither wins, anyway.

Costume: “Australia,” “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “The Duchess,” “Milk,” “Revolutionary Road.” My guess is that the extravagance of The Duchess will win out, but I really like the look of Revolutionary Road from what I've seen so far.

Documentary Feature: “The Betrayal (Nerakhoon),” “Encounters at the End of the World,” “The Garden,” “Man on Wire,” “Trouble the Water.” Same as with the foreign film, I've heard only good things about Man on Wire, and nothing about the other nominees.

When it comes to the tech categories and the short subjects, I'm afraid I don't know enough to say. I think WALL-E has an edge with sound mixing, and I imagine Benjamin Button will have astounded everyone when it comes to special effects and makeup, but it would be nice to see Hellboy II get a little respect. Also, I have no idea what category it would be in, or if this is even something that the Academy would pay attention to, but I believe that The Dark Knight altered its editing between action sequences and two-shots for the IMAX copies, and I think that's pretty cool, but I don't know if that actually has anything to do with the filmmaking process.

So, I am always atoning for my blog backup. I'm hoping to do some reviewing in my upcoming travels, and then wow everyone with a flurry of posting. Hopefully I'll have a chance to catch up with the award frontrunners in the next month or so!

IOU

Reviews of:

Slumdog Millionaire
Marley & Me
The Wrestler
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Australia
Quantum of Solace
The Wackness

...in no particular order!