Technology & MSG

On August 9th, WTOP announced a casting call for extras to take part in the shooting of Transformers 3. There was special interest in those with cars and precision driving experience. Nifty.
On August 10th, it was announced that quite a bit of the planned D.C. shoots were denied by the National Park Service. Not horribly [...]

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I predict that Inception will do rather well this weekend.
For once, the previews didn’t give away the best parts. Nor will I.
Christopher Nolan has done it again, combining perception and dreams and reality and demons in a twisted multi-layered plot. There are aspects of it reminiscent of The Matrix combined with Eternal Sunshine of the [...]

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We’re big on big televisions here in the United States. They’re supposedly better for watching sports, cartoons, sitcoms, movies, and everything else. At least that’s what the home electronics folks would have us believe. I’m a movie guy, and I’m not so sure.
Having watched a bunch of movies on big widescreen televisions, I’ve noticed that [...]

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I have been uninspired this week, despite having lots of free time. I’ve been trying to catch up with this year’s Oscar winners.
I enjoyed Up so much that I’ll be getting a copy of it. Up In the Air too, though I don’t need my own copy. Both had some emotional moments and the later [...]

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After staying up entirely too last on a school night, I have a few thoughts about the 82nd Annual Academy Awards. I have to ignore the sets for the most part, since I’d be drooling all over the keys for the duration.

NPH. Is there anything he can’t do?
What an entrance by Steve Martin and Alec [...]

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The last big snow, we all bitched about how we couldn’t get out. In retrospect, that was nothing. We could have gotten out. This time around — with over three feet of snow in less than 24 hours — no one is going anywhere without a plow, although I just got a report about some [...]

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I’m not prone to losing things but recent events have gotten me thinking about other objects that have gone missing.
Evil Empire, an album by Rage Against the Machine. I miss the hard riffs, slapping bass, and electric guitar effects. I think it was lifted from my CD wallet by a student while working at Severna [...]

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So The Men Who Stare at Goats has its moments, but not enough. Sadly, it is a case where the trailer holds most of the good stuff.
Clooney is a face actor. One of those guys who can bring intensity and disbelief at the same time. Like a lot his past movies — Burn After Reading, [...]

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It just occurred to me that I’ve seen a lot of movies lately.
I really enjoyed Zombieland. Funny, violent, and quirky, with a spectacular cameo. It was just as someone described it to me: “It’s definitely a zombie movie, but different than anything I could have expected.” I almost went to see it again this past [...]

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There’s this song called All Things, by The Cinematic Orchestra. It’s driving me nuts.
A sample is available from Pandora. The full track on Last.fm, and according to a comment there, “at the beginning: samples from John Barry’s work on the soundtrack of Petulia (1968).”
I haven’t seen the movie. This song (and every other track on [...]

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An unexpected gem, as seen on TV.
The opening credits of Kiss Kiss Bang Bang grabbed me right away, drawing me in knowing absolutely nothing about it. Really well done. As are the main character’s monologues directed towards the audience. As are the titles interspersed throughout the film.
I found it a quirky and clever whodunit with [...]

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Yesterday after work was a blur of activity, all across Anne Arundel County. Met up with some of the cool kids to hang out, before they headed back to school next week.

Slacklined on the shore of the Magothy River
Enjoyed double dogs and shakes at Ann’s Dari Creme
Failed to find a good movie at Marley Station, [...]

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The Kite Runner glossed over the immigration issues and the bulk of the extrication issues, themes that were prevalent in the book. It also glossed over the suicide attempt, which I thought was important to the story.
If I had to guess, I’d say were chopped for time. I would hate to be an editor with [...]

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Wolf Trap is an amazing venue, specifically the Filene Center. I usually avoid 66 at all costs, but this venue is worth the drive.
First, the venue itself is beautiful. A wooden open-air structure, not unlike Nissan Pavilion but small and more classy. The interior is lit by reflection off the white girders. Wood paneling and [...]

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In the course of one hour of Comedy Central — watching Christian Finnegan — I observed no less than six advertisements with Transformers themes. Six ads in less than sixty minutes. That’s pretty heavy rotation, considering the movie is already out.
It seems like that’s a lot of different companies and products to be merchandised and [...]

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