Instead of making a New Year's Resolution that would resolutely go unresolved, I've decided to set a couple of goals for myself. One goal: Watch all of Woody Allen's films.
According to IMDB, there are 39 (not including the one that just completed & not counting TV) films to see. Now, I'm trying to figure out a strategy in which to watch them: chronologically, ad hoc, etc... Any ideas or suggestions you might have will be gladly accepted and appreciated. Thanks to IMDB, below are all of his films (directed) from the most recent.
1. Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008) 2. Cassandra's Dream (2007) ... aka Rêve de Cassandre, Le (France) 3. Scoop (2006) 4. Match Point (2005) 5. Melinda and Melinda (2004) 6. Anything Else (2003) ... aka Anything else, la vie et tout le reste (France) ... aka Vie et tout le reste, La (France) 7. Hollywood Ending (2002) 8. The Curse of the Jade Scorpion (2001) ... aka Im Bann des Jade Skorpions (Germany) 9. Small Time Crooks (2000) 10. Sweet and Lowdown (1999) 11. Celebrity (1998) 12. Deconstructing Harry (1997) 13. Everyone Says I Love You (1996) 14. Mighty Aphrodite (1995) 15. Bullets Over Broadway (1994) 16. Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993) 17. Husbands and Wives (1992) 18. Shadows and Fog (1992) 19. Alice (1990) 20. Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989) 21. New York Stories (1989) (segment "Oedipus Wrecks") 22. Another Woman (1988) 23. September (1987) 24. Radio Days (1987) 25. Hannah and Her Sisters (1986) 26. The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985) 27. Broadway Danny Rose (1984) 28. Zelig (1983) 29. A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy (1982) 30. Stardust Memories (1980) 31. Manhattan (1979) 32. Interiors (1978) 33. Annie Hall (1977) 34. Love and Death (1975) ... aka Guerre et amour (France) 35. Sleeper (1973) 36. Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex * But Were Afraid to Ask (1972) ... aka Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex (USA: short title) 37. Bananas (1971) 38. Take the Money and Run (1969) 39. What's Up, Tiger Lily? (1966)
I'd been wanting to see Charlie Kaufman's latest movie, Synecdoche, NY, before it left the theaters and I finally did Friday night.
I write this blog without reading any other reviews of the movie. That said, I'm sure there are several points of the movie that I will miss - simply because of the film's complexity. The movie is existential at its core. The first theme I see in the movie is Nietzsche's thoughts on Eternal Reccurence. The overly simplistic premise of this theory is that time is infinite, but matter is finite. We are finite beings, and as opposed to actually dying and/or being reincarnated, one lives the same life over and over again (because there is a finite amount of matter - meaning us- in an infinite span of time). So, the takeaway here is: if your life is infinitely cyclical, make it the life you'd want to live again and again, forever.
The movie starts by dropping us into the lives of the Cotard family. Caden Cotard, played by Philip Seymour Hoffman, is an overweight, thirty something sycosis-suffering husband and father. Caden's wife, Adele, played by Catherine Keener, is an unhappy woman, around Caden's age, longing for a more bohemian-type lifestyle, or just some other life and lifestyle than she's currently living. The couple share a four-year-old daughter, Olive, who suffers from her own obsession with the color of her poop, but still oddly enough appears to be somewhat of a normal kid. The family is an artistic one - Caden a live-theater director and Adele a painter. The couple seem to be on a continual search of something other than what they have, although neither know what it is they want.
We attend a regularly scheduled marriage-counseling session with Caden and Adele. Caden sits on the left side of the couch in somewhat of an upright position while Adele is on the right side, slouched down and leaning over the side - illustrative of any 15 year old teenager forced into therapy that she "obviously" doesn't need. Adele confesses to the therapist, played by Hope Davis, that she's fantasized about Caden dying so that she can start over again without feeling guilty. Caden doesn't appear shocked by the confession. We know their separation/divorce is inevitable and kind of hope for it, so both of these people can experience some sort of long-term happiness.
Caden wraps rehearsals of his latest apt production, Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, and returns home to share the accomplishment with Adele. Adele is happy for Caden, but informs him that she will not be able to attend opening night due to another engagement. Caden is clearly disappointed. It's obvious that Adele does care for Caden and vice-versa, but you realize that it's only a legal relationship at this point. Adele does manage to make it to the second night of the play, but it lacked the specialness of opening night. Hazel, the box-office attendant, played by Samantha Morton, readily and eagerly fills the vacancy on opening night. The two share a mutual attraction but Caden remains committed to his emotionally absent Adele.
The table turns when Caden is anticipating a trip to Berlin with Adele and Olive, where Adele will premiere her latest artwork. As the couple huddle over their kitchen bar for breakfast, Adele announces that she thinks only she and Olive should travel to Berlin. Caden is somewhat taken aback and Adele apologizes for hurting his feelings. Adele leaves with Olive and we are left with Caden, and all of his pustules - literally. Here is where the movie changes and somewhat resembles Being John Malkovich, also written by Charlie Kaufman.
Time passes but Caden doesn't seem to notice. He receives a fellowship grant that will allow him to produce his magnum opus. He rents a huge "stage" large enough to hold a city, which is a good thing because that is exactly what Caden proceeds to build, albeit unintentionally. Caden starts pre-production of his play, which he never titles although he tosses around lots of potential titles. The problem is that the play is only a reproduction of his life with Adele. Life continues to happen around and to Caden and he even thinks he's actively engaged in it, but he is not. (For example, Caden finds himself in a relationship with an actress named Claire, played by Michelle Williams, but only mechanically - he's not at all enganged in the relationship - even though the two produced a daughter, Ariel, whom he often calls Olive.) He is on an unknowingly mission to find the vanishing point in his and Adele's life. The actors in his plays take on the earlier life of Caden and Adele, but only starting at the point in which we are dropped into the picture. The movie continues to evolve like this and eventually catches up to itself and then surpasses it, with actors portraying Caden and the others involved in his life moving directly in front of Caden and the real "others" in his life. The movie ends when Caden becomes the directed instead of the director.
So many things happen between the time Adele leaves Caden and the end of the movie. It would take me several days, perhaps weeks, to intelligently write about the many complex layers in the movie so I will only focus on just the one. First, meet Sammy Barnathan - a very odd man who we see early on in the movie but don't find out that he is a real person (as opposed to someone in Caden's imagination, for example) until Caden is casting for his masterpiece. Sammy, claiming not to be an actor, auditions for the role of Caden and admits to following Caden around for years, taking notes. He knows the way Caden thinks and can accurately anticipate and predict Caden's actions and reactions.
Second, note that Hazel is still around. Granted after giving up on Caden ever reciprocating her feelings, she moved on, bought a house (that stayed on fire during the entire movie), married a decent man and had three boys (although she only admits to having twins). However, several years pass and Hazel loses her job at the box office and calls on Caden. She is once again sucked into Caden's controlling vortex and ends up losing her husband and children, although she doesn't seem too disturbed by it.
Caden proceeds to develop his play and uses cast members to portray himself, Claire, Ariel, extras in his real life and eventually Hazel. The only two people not cast are Adele and Olive. He is recreating his life and when one thing doesn't seem as it should, he starts from the beginning again. This is the rehearsal that never ends - hence, the Eternal Recurrence reference above. The characters (real and projected) age. However, they never evolve into anything other than themselves. What's interesting is that the actors playing the real people (ie: Sammy and the actress playing Hazel) actually begin to make their own decisions outside of the rehearsal. For example, Sammy and the actress playing Hazel actually do get together and truly enjoy each other's company, but Caden gets jealous and tries to intervene. Naturally, Hazel submits to Caden's advances and loses Sammy. This is where the play catches up to itself and changes again.
In an effort to wrap this very long blog and not scare away future readers, I will say this: Go see the movie. Then see it again, and then a couple more times. Charlie Kaufman spent years preparing the script and then shooting the movie and crafting it just right. The least we can do is spend a few hours watching it, a few more hours thinking about it, and then hopefully a lifetime seeing how it applies to our lives.
Think about Eternal Recurrence. If you are doomed to live your life over and over again, what things would you change right now?
So, Mike has been fostering a beagle dog and her four little pups for the past three weeks or so. They are so cute. Luckily, the canines all already have homes but they all just needed a place to stay until the pups are six weeks old, so they can travel to NYC. Mike got a call from the lady who had told us about the pups we rescued a few months ago asking if he'd be willing to foster them because homes had been found for them, but they were currently in an animal control center and about to euthanized. Since they had homes, he agreed. A volunteer got them from animal control and brought them to the house.
The mother's name is Georgia and each one of her pups have been given names of cities from Georgia. For example, Savannah is one the female pups' name. I don't know all of the names (apparently this was already done when Mike got them). But they're very cute. See for yourself:
I know there is a problem with pet overpopulation, but I hate that animal control centers euthanize animals so indiscriminately - doesn't matter the type, age, background, circumstance, etc - if an animal is in the center for X amount of days/hours it gets put down. If it weren't for animal rescue groups, a lot of these animals would've died and missed out on living a happy, healthy and purposeful life -- improving the quality of life of a senior, helping a physically challenged person with daily living, and/or making a family feel complete. Animal control does not take any steps to help relocate the animal or to see if the animal might actually be a lost pet.
I'm glad there are animal rescue groups exist, but I think it's also our responsibility as pet owners and pet lovers to do our part in reducing pet over population. Be sure to get your pet spayed or neutered. If you have neighbors or friends who need help with this, give it (spaying/neutering) to them as a gift. We've had several neighborhood strays spayed/neutered. There are many affordable ways to get animals (including the "at-risk" neighbor's "pet") "fixed." A couple places to check out are: SPAY - USA and the American Humane Society.
With the holidays approaching, a lot of people will be giving puppies or kittens as a gift, including our new President-elect. Please considering adopting from your local animal control center and encourage others to do the same. (Please note that sometimes there is a difference between an animal control center and an animal shelter.) Most animal control centers are funded by the local government whereas a lot of animal shelters are nonprofit organizations, funded by individual donors and/or grants. Please start your search at your local animal control center (this is where they euthanize the animals if they are not adopted within X amount of time), then move to your local animal shelter if you are unable to find the pet that meets your needs.
Other possible gifts are time (through volunteerism) and money/supplies. There are several ways to volunteer your time: 1) become a foster home for a pet in transition, 2) help out at a local shelter - great opportunity for family volunteer time and giving back to the community or, 3) help a rescue group by trying to locate homes for displaced pets. Shelters are in continual need of money and supplies. If you have resources but no time, write a check to a local no-kill animal shelter and/or drop off a load of supplies (be sure to call and see what their specific need is at the time), most of the time the donations are tax deductible - based on the shelter. Below are a few links you might find helpful:
I haven't blogged in a long time. I need to write more because I'm noticing that since I've cut down on my blogging, I'm having more difficulty expressing myself. I know some might object to that statement since I don't seem to have a problem sharing my opinion, so I'll clarify it this way -- articulately expressing myself. It's so much easier to express oneself in writing because the writer can take her time and edit craft statements and opinions. Verbal expression is much less thoughtful yet assigned the same weight.
Yesterday, I rented the first season of Twin Peaks. I know it came out in 1990, but for some reason I seemed to have not been involved with mainstream society in the late 80's and early 90's. I remember people talking about Twin Peaks, but I have no recollection of even having access to it. I've watched the first two episodes. The second one was very good - lots of great one-liners. The first episode started with a "previously on Twin Peaks" clip which I thought was odd since I'm watching the first season. Was there a movie or something that was a prequel to the TV show?
I also rented Fellini's "8 1/2." I recently watched Woody Allen's "Stardust Memories" and LOVED it! So, 8 1/2 was suggested to me. Eventually, I'd like to write a blog about the both of them.
I'll stop here. Hopefully this short post will give me the blogging jump start I need to pick up blogging on a regular basis again.
So, today Gabe and I got to go to the Atlanta Motor Speedway, as part of a Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce event, sponsored by Office Depot. Unlike my mother, I've never been a Nascar fan. I've been to drag races and a demolition derby (which was pretty fun), but neither of those were on my own volition - I was always just tagging along. Likewise, had the Chamber not been holding their monthly networking event at the PepBoys Auto 500, I also would not have attended this. But, I am so glad I did. I really had a great time.
When we first arrived, we saw many RV's and people were camping out in the parking lots, with their portable TVs and lawn chairs. We found our assigned parking lot and proceeded to the gate. There is this moat, a moat of sponsors, basically surrounding the entrance to the speedway itself. Various sponsor tents piped music out to the crowd - it was like dueling rock songs. Gabe even recognized Harvey Danger.
Once inside, we made our way to the pedestrian tunnel that led to the infield (which is quite an envied area to be in, I understand). We saw several more RVs along with many racers' buses and trailers that carefully transport the multi-sponsor racing cars. Office Depot, who sponsors Carl Edwards (#99), had a nice tent with food and free samples. (I love me some free goodies!)
Outside the tent was a mock #99's race car. Also on hand was one of the best things EVER! A Nascar driving simulator! Three people could get in the Nascar Sprint Experience simulator and race at a time. You raced against each other, and 22 other simulated cars. Right off the bat I immediately spun out and got turned around. Once I got turned around and made it back on the track I did okay. I placed 21st out of 22. Gabe came in after me. ;) Yes, that made me very happy. In all fairness, the simulator was a bit odd and it felt almost like you were driving something that was in the air, not like a car on a road. It was a lot of fun.
After racing, we went back in the tent because they were having drawings - with various prizes. I sat down and wasn't really paying attention, because I never win anything, but I heard Gabe say that they were going to call my name. I didn't believe him, but sure enough they did. I won two Grand Stand tickets to Sunday's race! Knowing how big of a Nascar fan my mother is, I texted her and told her the good news. I'm not going to be in town on Sunday, so I'm giving the tickets to her. She's so excited.
It was time to head out to the track because the cars were about to start driving for the qualifying race. We walked back through the pedestrian tunnel and headed up to the grandstands. The cars were lining up. Then, one by one, each car took off with such a force. We stood close to the fence that surrounded the track. The first car that came by was so loud and SO fast! I, intellectually, knew that the cars went fast - 180-200mph, but I was shocked seeing the cars speed by me. I felt the vibration from the cars. I have to say, I was so amazed and amused and excited. It was really spectacular. I had no idea how exhilarating it was. I'm sure I'd get bored with it all after an hour or so, but the short time we watched the qualifying was terrific.
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