This is a modern noir film set in a high school. It’s interesting and unique, but somewhat difficult to follow. The dialog is often difficult and hard to understand. Despite that, it’s a worthwhile flick.

This is a quick read (or listen) and is worthwhile. It’s a first person narrative about life in modern American and covers a variety of topics. Though a bit egotistical, Kurt Vonnegut is funny, intelligent, and has some interesting observations. It didn’t change my life, but I’d read it again and I recommend it (unless you like G.W. Bush).

This was a fine movie. Not great but not bad. It’s supposed to be the story of the family behind The Graduate – i.e., Mrs. Robinson. That seems like a kind of clever idea, but the movie is pretty unremarkable and predictable anyway.

I listened to the audio version of this book, which is narrated by Brendan Fraser. Unexpectedly, I didn’t think his narration of this book was as good as when he read Dragon Rider, but I think that’s just because Dragon Rider had more non-human characters that gave him a greater opportunity for sound effects and voices. This is still a very good narration.

I felt that the first book in this series, Inkheart, was actually a better story. It was also much more self-contained, written in a way that makes me think a trilogy wasn’t originally planned (though the door was open). On contrast, Inkspell is clearly part of a series. You could probably ready it without reading Inkheart first, but at the end you are primed and ready for book 3 (which is not yet out). The end of Inkspell is more a pause than an ending.

Despite my complaints and comparisons, this is still a worthwhile read and I am hopeful that the final book in the trilogy will be a good one when it comes out.

Last night Benjamin and I watched the second half of Weeds – Season 1. The whole season is only 10 episodes long, 30 minutes each without commercial time since it’s a Showtime show.

Claire and Erik recommended this show and I’m glad they did. It’s a very dark comedy about a hellish suburban town in which a young widow is selling weed to support her family after her husband’s sudden death.

The one thing about this show that makes zero sense to me is why this woman would WANT to continue to live in that hell. It’s all about her struggle to maintain her lifestyle, and certainly there’s value in the familiar, but man this place is icky and she doesn’t seem like someone who’d want to be there. On the other hand, I think that irony and juxtaposition is half the point.

This show is a quick jaunt due to the shortness of the season but it’s worthwhile. It’s also nice to have a show you can watch in 30 minute installments that’s actually worthwhile.

I hear season 2 is airing soon and I think it will be on iTunes for those, like me, who don’t have Showtime. Oh, and this show has some serious Showtime moments – full on fucking with nothing left to the imagination. Just FYI.

I thought this movie was okay when I watched it this weekend while Benjamin was at a bachelor party. But then when I watched the DVD bonuses about the making of the movie, I appreciated it even more. The movie is an adaptation of a novel written by Steve Martin. Martin did the adaptation to screenplay and also stars in the movie. Clare Danes is excellent as always and delivers a very sensitive, not overblown, performance. (It’s strange that she is also in The Family Stone, which I watched the same night.) The character of Jeremy was deeply annoying and not likable at all, but they did a decent job of making him likable at the end (their goal). It’s worth watching this, but it’s no barn burner.

I watched this on DVD from Netflix this past weekend with Benjamin. It was a lazy weekend.

Sarah Jessica Parker’s character is truly annoying in this movie and some of the humor is painful to watch, but overall I thought it was a good flick. Lots of characters that are suprisingly well developed considering the limited time span of the movie and the number of characters involved. Funny with a little sadness. Not a terribly unique storyline, but well done.

I said I was devouring this book… I should have waited two hours because I finished it later that day. It is a great adventure story even though it’s a children’s book. Definitely worth a read and the audio version is well done. Buy it for a family car trip?

This movie added almost nothing to my understanding of war or the first Gulf War in particular. If you feel like watching a war movie, there are many better choices available.

I saw this movie with Claire on Monday night at The Admiral theater in West Seattle. The movie seems the typical story of dissatisfied people where nothing really changes by the end. Claire and I also felt that Jennifer Aniston’s character was just a stand-in stereotype. For whatever reason, this film reminds me of Your Friends & Neighbors, which I didn’t care for but also don’t remember terribly well.