I watched "Master and Commander" and "Hidalgo" tonight. It was Boy Movie Night, clearly. So I settled in with my beer and enjoyed the pretty.

M&C was better than I expected, although it took a while to settle into it. The effects were spectacular, and I was really impressed how much they shot out on the ocean. I liked the cast, too, especially Lt. Pullings. And Pippin! Hee. I loved the Galapagos bits. And the weevils. Ew!

Hidalgo was... actually, it felt like two movies. There was the Disney movie with the wacky cartoon violence and adventure, and then there was this rather moving story about a guy owning his heritage and his past. The problem was they really didn't mesh very well, and I was slightly appalled that they used the Wounded Knee massacre as a character driver. I won't even get into the biological implausibilities and inaccuracies: people who know horses better than I do can likely speak to all that. So while I enjoyed parts of it, I was left vaguely unsatisfied.

Finally saw Hero last night. Wonderful. Still swooning.

Yeah, I watched Hidalgo on dvd and was also appalled that they used Wounded Knee that way.

If only they could have used a horse that really looked like a mustang rather than the horse they used.

Actual mustangs and actual arabian horses are both excellent endurance racers.

I'm not sure that the QH-type paint that they used in the movie would have been the same.

Netflix sent me The Apple while I was on vacation. This makes me happy, though I wish I had gotten it before I left so I could have made DX watch it.

The movie basically consists of a lot of "now, like my innocence, pie gone" talk about life and dreams and humanity and existence, and I think it might be a really interesting movie to watch with my full attention, because despite it all seeming dangerously close to pretentiousness, there was also some intriguing philosophy in there. It's very much a thinking person's movie.

I saw Waking Life in the theatre with my father last year. Neither of us were tired when we went into the movie but we were fuking exhausted when it was over. We agreed that it was rather pretentious, despite all the pretty colors swirling swirling swirling around. Not to say there weren't some interesting philosophical views, there were quite a few. Quite a lot in fact. And it had Adam Goldberg, which is always a good thing. But it just felt like, after an hour into the film, my skull was going to split open from getting hit by all the metaphilosophical bitch-slapping going on.

But it just felt like, after an hour into the film, my skull was going to split open from getting hit by all the metaphilosophical bitch-slapping going on.

I agree. It was like...TALK LIKE REAL PEOPLE, DAMMIT.

Yes, and Happy Birthday PC.

Swirly swirly swirly color, artichoke + wood = marble floor tile, life and stuff. Rinse repeat.

I know people who talk like the people in Waking Life. It didn't prevent me from falling alseep several times.

I saw Hero yesterday. It was incredibly pretty.

I just came back from Vanity Fair. Also pretty, but less so that Hero. Rhys Ifans was surprisingly good and hot. I was shocked to see his name in the credits.

But it just felt like, after an hour into the film, my skull was going to split open from getting hit by all the metaphilosophical bitch-slapping going on.

I walked out of Waking Life (walked out of my living room -- we saw it on DVD) -- the way it kept trying to draw philosophical meaning out of scientific observations drove me BATSHIT because the science was ALL WRONG. I got tired of shouting at the screen, and so I left.

I watched Witness for the first time last night, and noticed a very young Viggo Mortensen in a nonspeaking, but prominently visually featured role.

Yes, and Happy Birthday PC.

Aw, and you even changed your tag in my honor.