Unemployment Tuesday: Happy Thanksgiving!

Another installment of Unemployment Tuesday here. Let's keep our fingers crossed that we only have a couple of these left. There are glimmers of hope, good things on the horizon, possibilities. Like I said, fingers crossed.

Hey, so Thanksgiving is this week! Happy Thanksgiving!

This year's been pretty rough for a lot of people. There are always folks in need and this year is certainly no different. There are a lot of great programs out there, food banks and whatnot, and it would be great if we could all give something small. For example, in Santa Monica there's this Turkey Dinner. Or Amber Benson is running Tara 4 Charity where if you buy a Tara doll this week 100% of the proceeds will be donated to the Los Angeles Regional Foodbank. If the price tag of the doll is a little steep for you, you can make a donation directly to the foodbank and send your receipt to Amber for a chance to win one of three dolls they'll be giving away. Check out her blog for more details.

For those of you not in LA, there are food and clothing drives going on in pretty much every city. A quick google search should find you a good one.

Other links!

My friend is still trying to go to China. Only one week left for him. Click to vote and help him get out of here!

Another friend of friend has a video trying to get on TV. Check out Be Like A Duck (it's really, really cute) And click it a vote if you're a fan. I think you will be.

Inkwell Bookstore had this link up the other day for this super cool little video. It's recommended viewing that's definitely worth the two minutes.

PC Pro ran this feature on the correlation between science fiction and, well, science. For anyone who's ever been inspired by a sci-fi story, seen the possibilities for the future, it's an interesting read.

LA Times has a couple of interesting reads this week. First there's this one about the changing of the guard at Disney. Disney's new chairman Rich Ross is changing the game on the lot. Several execs are out all ready, the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea remake has been nixed (thank goodness for that one), and who knows what's next. The question remains whether or not these changes will all be for the best. (Thanks to L for linking to this one)

On a lighter note is this piece by Scott Timberg about Cormac McCarthy and the upcoming release of the adaptation of his novel The Road. If anything involving McCarthy can be considered light that is. The Road opens tomorrow and stars Viggo Mortensen. Whatever Timberg has to say about women relating to McCarthy's work, well, I'm a fan. The Road is a fantastic book and I'm looking forward to checking out the film. (And thanks to DL for this)

If nothing else it's gotta be better than New Moon. I actually went to see it this morning, don't ask what possessed me, and yeah. I almost walked out after an hour. I probably should have.

That's all I've got at the moment. Need to get back to my novel writing. We're into the final week here. I've got a lot of work to do.

It's Monday. Happy Monday!

It's Monday. I guess you've probably noticed that by now. Personally, I think I'm still a little sleep deprived this wonderful Monday evening. It was a good weekend that was mostly relaxing but still not enough sleep was to be had. There was Mom time and Dog time and bike time, football time, laundry time, and dinner having time. Followed by more bike time. One of these Sundays I'll figure out that riding my bike to my friend's apartment for dinner is not a great plan. Seems wonderful at 5 PM, exhausting at 10 PM.

One of the things my mom and I did this weekend was attend a fundraiser dinner and silent auction. Something I've never experienced before and I must say it was certainly interesting. I'll spare you the details but rest assured the food was tasty and the drinks did not disappoint.

While not well mixed, I did try what I think may be a version of my new favorite cocktail. A Strawberry Basil Gin drink that sent a lovely combination of flavors dancing across my tongue with every sip. Well, that might be an exaggeration. But it was really good! So good in fact that I'm attempting my own Strawberry Basil cocktail this evening. I'll let you know how it goes and will certainly share the recipe and pictures if it's a success. For the moment I think it's going to be some version of this Berry Gimlet.

I do have more to talk about beyond alcohol! Keep reading!

Actually, I have questions.

First off, what are people's thoughts on this whole lawsuit thing by the Kirby Estate against Marvel and Disney? Basically Jack Kirby's kids are seeking to reclaim the copyrights for the comic book characters he created for Marvel (Jack Kirby himself died in 1994).

Personally I find it to be an interesting albeit very complicated story. As someone involved even remotely in creative endeavors, I tend to fall on the side of the creator, or in this case the creator's estate. Even more so when you consider how much intellectual property is improperly acquired or how often creators are cheated out of compensation they should fairly receive for their work. Against that you could argue that the creator's work was work-for-hire and therefore belongs to Marvel. An argument I don't find particularly convincing but I have to concede that this case is more complicated because of how copyright laws have changed over the years.

Coming on the heals of the recent Superman case, it seems like the Kirby's do have a pretty good shot here (Jerry Siegel's Estate won back the his share of the rights to Superman back in August. Kirby's estate is not surprisingly using the same legal representation.)

/Film's article does give a little more background though as well as a partial list of some of the characters he's responsible for.

Oh, also, there's this about copyright law from the LA Times:

Under copyright law, creators and co-creators can seek to regain copyrights they previously assigned to a company 56 years after first publication and can give notice of their intentions to do so up to 10 years before that.

Taking that into consideration, does that mean the work-for-hire bit is irrelevant anyway? I believe so. 

So what do you think? Are his heirs wrong in trying to reclaim the copyright for work he created? Should the rights to these characters remain with Marvel (and now Disney)? The films that could potentially be affected would be ones like the upcoming Avengers movies Marvel has planned although most of those should be completed before the date that the Kirby Estate is trying to reclaim the copyrights by. Even if they get back the copyrights, Disney and Marvel would still own the trademarks. Or something like that?

Some other sites with various thoughts. Film School Rejects seems to fall on the side of being bummed that the Kirby Estate may put a halt to superhero movies. Paul Constant is coming in on the other side.

I was going to ask more questions but after that I think I should probably split this up into several posts. Different topics deserve their own discussions, don't you think? Okay, I'm convinced. More questions will come later. Specifically I want to talk about women in the workplace. Or rather, women working with other women in the workplace. I've noticed a few things through my own experiences and listening to the experiences of others and I'd like throw some of that out there. Just not right this second. I shall compose my thoughts and come back at you maybe tomorrow. How's that sound? I like it!

Thoughts: My Weekend in Film 12/9

Before I say anything about anything, can I mention that yesterday was completely ridiculous? Because it was. Completely. It was busy from (literally) the second I walked into the office. Maybe I'll go into the details later but it included everything from an incredibly stupid mistake by me (try booking a car in the wrong city) to having a bird shit on my head. No kidding. That was awesome.

Okay, enough of that.

The first thing I want to mention (or would this be the second? Whatever...) is that the film that was once called Kids In America (and is now apparently called Young Americans) seems to have finally gotten a release date. KIA was my first gig as an Office PA. We shot out in Phoenix back at the beginning of '07 and for a long time there's been no word on when the film would actually be released. Until now. Now, according to IMDB, Kids In America aka Young Americans will be coming out on January 30, 2009. Of course, this is IMDB and therefore not always 100% reliable. And these things are always subject to change. But it's exciting and maybe it's even a little bit true. I'm not sure I really want to give them money to let me in the theater to watch it, but I am curious. We'll see I suppose.

Onto the weekend.

Friday PM:

We wrapped a little on the late side and by the time I got home I barely felt like dinner, let alone going out anywhere. So J and I parked in front of the TV, grabbed some drinks, and wandered through the oh so interesting programming that occupies the Friday night schedule. Luckily IFC was there to rescue us from the other mediocre options we were presented with.

They were totally showing Reefer Madness.

J and I decided that this crazy guy is awesome.

J has more of a relationship with the flick than I do, having once owned it on VHS. The only time I've seen it has been streaming online (I once watched it over the course of two days during a particularly boring stretch at ANTM). The reefer madness never really entered my life until I was a little older.

Reefer Madness is a riot. It's "scare tactics" really only serve to glorify the use of Marijuana. Those "awful" parties the kids go to look like a blast to me. Dancing, drinking, making out with strangers... what's so bad about that??? I guess there is always the madness, murder, and mayhem that eventually ensues. Eh, whatever!

The transfer on IFC looked not horrible but man oh man did that sound bad. I guess Reefer Madness isn't the kind of fare Criterion is going to pick up and restore anytime soon. Can't say I blame them. It's entertaining, maybe even subversive, and definitely exploitative but yeah. It's Reefer Madness.

And being that it's in the public domain, it's available online for watchin'.

After Reefer Madness I actually attempted to give The Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake a chance. Um. Bad call. Not only is it awful (it's really awful) it's just plain, straight boring. After 40 minutes I just could not take anymore of Jessica Biel's stomach. I mean sure, it's a nice stomach, but come on.



And that guy who plays her fiance? So trashy! Why do movies and television always stick the absurdly hot girl with the really gross guy? It's so not fair. I mean, I know it's playing into a male fantasy, letting your regular Joe guys imagine for a second that they could ever have a chance with a girl like that (yeah right). But come on. NO FAIR. Chicks watch these movies too. If you're going to give Jessica's stomach that much screen time, at least give me a comparable set of male abs to stare at too.

TCM 2000 sucks.

*It's also bad beyond her stomach. It's just more of the same, slicked up Hollywood Horror. It has none of the grittiness or raw energy of the original. It looks horrible. It completely fails at building tension. And it's boring. I'm not really sure which offense is worse.

Saturday Afternoon:



After a lazy morning and moderately productive early afternoon, I finally got into my Friday Night Lights marathon. I watched the first four episodes of season 1 and I love it. It's so good! The show shot in what's very much so Peter Berg's style so it looks incredibly cinematic. Which is to say it looks good. Beyond the visuals though, what really makes the show great, is the story telling and the character treatment. The writing is just brilliant. These people come across as "real"; their relationships, the plot developments, the depiction of life in a small football town, it's all believable. I'm completely hooked.

I hear season 2 isn't as good but after what I've seen of season 1 I will watch all of it and be glad for it.

Sunday:

Another reason why I love TCM (Turner Classic Movies not Texas Chainsaw Massacre): all day Sunday they were doing a Disney movie marathon.

I started with:

Swiss Family Robinson



I adore Swiss Family Robinson. What kid wouldn't love that story of adventure? fighting Pirates, chasing off tigers, wrestling giant snakes, and living in the coolest tree house imaginable. No wonder they all decide to stay on the island. I wouldn't want to leave either!

Followed By:

20,000 Leagues Under The Sea



This movie was always one of my favorites as a kid. Personally, I think it shows my good taste. The stellar cast alone is reason to watch. Kirk Douglas, Petter Lorre, James Mason. Damn that's some casting. Sure the effects look a little cheesy now but I can still appreciate how groundbreaking they were for the time.

Kirk Douglas's little song routine is still one of my favorites ever. I'm not a huge fan of musical things, but I love that song.

Followed By

Old Yeller



Is it weird that I never saw this as a kid?

Followed By

The Parent Trap

Which I didn't actually watch because I had to go grocery shopping and eat and run to the airport to pick-up K.

Followed By

Pollyanna



It's been YEARS since I last saw Pollyanna. I still think the "Glad Game" is silly but I like the movie. I'd still really like to see the silent version starring Mary Pickford.

I'd also really like to see Happy-Go-Lucky. An apparently modern take on the story. It's been getting pretty good reviews and sounds fun.

***

Apologies for the brevity, but it's another busy day in the office. We wrap shooting today so probably needless to say, there's a lot going on. Moving all of the wrap gifts from the office to our cars not being the least of it. But yes, enough slacking for me. Back to work.

***

On the Slate:

I honestly don't really know. Haven't had time to think about it.

Thoughts: My Weekend in Film

Normally I use my weekends as catch up time for all of the movie watching I failed to do during the week. However this past weekend was rather lackluster in terms of film. It was just too nice outside to spend my time indoors. I did manage a little movie and television watching though.

Saturday AM:



Before I managed to make it outside, I did spend some time on my couch recovering from Friday night's mischief. A couple hours of Scrubs did help me forget about my slight hangover.

I still really enjoy that show. They manage to create a nice blend of humorous situations and serious topics. It's not just another medical drama (although I am a fan of a couple of other medically themed shows. Like House) but it manages to deliver on the dramatic medical topics.

It's also possibly my favorite thing that Zach Braff has done. Garden State was okay I guess but I like him better in Scrubs. And Dr. Cox makes me happy to no end. He's by far my favorite character.



Unfortunately Comedy Central decided to air the movie Ladies Man after a couple of delightful hours of Scrubs. I don't have much to say about it other than it caused my headache to come back. It was good for one thing: it managed to motivate me to turn off the TV and move from the couch.

Saturday Early PM:



Before I finally left my house for bike riding and beach going, my roommate and I watched the first episode of season 1 of The Tudors. I know, I'm still on season 1. I have the excuse of not having Showtime but I do have Netflix. So The Tudors DVDs are slowly making their way to my living room.

I've so far watched the first two episodes, as well as a smattering of little bits from later in the season. I'm very excited for the series. It has an immensely talented cast, high production values, and it's about an incredibly fascinating period of history. Sex, war, intrigue. It delivers in every way that The Other Boleyn girl failed to. (If you've read my review of that, you know I was extremely disappointing with the awful adaptation of Phillipa Gregory's novel).

We only made it through the first episode. It was a gorgeous day and we do live only a mile from the beach after all. Couldn't spend the entire day in front of my TV!

Saturday PM:



So after all of this beach time and biking, not to mention continued hangover recovery, I definitely did not have the energy for an excessive Saturday night. So instead of too much crazy the roommates and I stuck in the, ah, entertaining Killer Klowns From Outer Space.

How exactly does one describe this movie? For my one roommate who watched it as a kid, she went back to a place of nostalgia and childhood fear. For me, having only seen it in the midst of my horror movie craze, I enjoy the cheese, am vaguely disturbed by horribleness of it, and mostly just laugh. For my other roommate, who had never seen it before, she was mostly just mystified by our giggles and saw it as only one of many bad 80's horror movies.

It's a sort of unique, sort of bizarre, mostly terrible genre film. It subscribes to most of the horror conventions of 80's horror and contains bits that are just down right bad (the hillbilly's accent and dialog any one? Ugh). At the same time... I mean, they wrap people in cotton candy and drain their blood. They shoot popcorn at people and chase people with balloon animals. They kill people with puppet shows. Who thinks of these things??? There are so many elaborate set-ups that I can't help but being reluctantly impressed.

And it's a movie about Killer Clowns! Clowns make you laugh! Lots of people are scared of them! The movie is horrible but it just has so much going for it that I can't help but be entertained.

That being said, I really don't recommend the special features on the DVD. At least not viewed directly after the film. There's only so much a sober brain can take.

If you're so inclined you can see more of the Chiodo brother's, the masterminds of Killer Klowns, at their website here.

Saturday Late PM:



My final viewing of the night, of the weekend in fact, was a late night screening of Disney's Aladdin. It was always one of my favorites as a kid so naturally I own the DVD.

There were a few years, when I was still a part of Disney's target audience, when it seemed like just could not miss. The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King. Each one presented us with stellar animation, engaging characters, songs that I still know the words to. Maybe it's just that I was the right age for them but personally I think it's more than that. I think they're all well crafted animated films that will continue to appeal to kids and parents for a long, long time.

Although, watching Aladdin again after not having seen it in a very long time, I did notice points that were not quite as cute as I remember them being. Aboo can be annoying and Gilbert Godfrey's charm has kind of worn off. (Um, Gilbert Godfrey has charm? Not exactly...)

I still enjoy singing along though. That at least will probably never change.

Sunday:

It was way too nice out yesterday to sit inside at all. And with no hangover, I had nothing to even tempt me to take up residence on the couch. So sorry, no Sunday movie watching to report!

On the slate for this week:

More Tudors for sure. I've got the next two episodes on disc 1. Then I'll send it back to Netflix for more!

Once: It's been on my To See List since I first heard about it and I've finally got it to watch. I'm excited.

There Will Be Blood: Possibly. The DVD came out last Tuesday and I picked it up over the weekend. I'm ready to watch it again. We all ready know that I love PTA. And I like milkshakes.

Other than that? Not sure yet. There are a few things I might try to catch in the theater. Juno comes out on DVD tomorrow. Who knows what will be on TV. Or how much time I'll have. There will be something though, there always is!

Thoughts: Finding Nemo

Hehehe... what a cute movie. I love cartoons. The animation in this one was pretty nice. I know a few people were complaining about halos around the characters but I personally didn't notice. I like the computer animation.

The movie was really enjoyable. I've been meaning to see it since it came out but just never got around to it. I'm glad I got to see it now. It was really clever too. I mean, some of it was obvious like mount wannahokaloogie or whatever their volcanoe thing was called. But it was fun and silly. And I loved the Hitchcock references. Oh and even more fantastic, did those seagulls look familiar to anyone else? Can we say Wallace and Gromit? Watch the Wrong Trousers and you'll see what I'm talking about. Aaaaand how about the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea reference? There's also moments/references from The Shining, Shrek, Scarface, and Monty Python (another one of my favorite references "Swim Away! Swim Away!"). I'm sure there are probably even more I didn't notice. Hehe, I'm all excited now.

Yeah, Finding Nemo definitely lived up to the hype. Sooo much fun! Woo! Hehe.

edit: I forgot to mention the Jaws references!!! Dude! only one of my favorite movies ever! I can't believe I forgot to mention the references to it. i fail. heh.

Thoughts: Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

I really wasn't all that excited about seeing this movie when it first came out. I mean, it was a Disney movie produced by Jerry Bruckheimer. Not very promising. Happily, I was pleasantly surprised.

I think it's such a cool movie. It's pretty and stylish. And the effects with the pirates are really very cool. Plus, I probably don't need to say it but I will anyway, Johnny Depp is amazing. I really think he made the movie. It would have been an enjoyable movie otherwise, but now it's just fantastic.

I'm so in love with Johnny Depp. Definitely one of my favorite actors, if not my very favorite. He always has an amazing amount of energy. And he becomes characters, it's never just watching him say some different lines and make a few different expressions, he is the role. And god he's sexy.

Sexiest man alive indeed. I'm glad the rest of the world caught on to what I've known for years, heh. Go Pirates.