Ying xiong

It's shaping up to be a good year at the movies. All-in-all 2003 kinda sucked so 2004 has been something of a surprise. "Hidalgo" was made specifically for me. I mean, c'mon, it's Viggo on a horse. It's not going to win any awards, but in my world what could be more perfect ;) I expected a lot from "Kill Bill: Vol 2," "Harry Potter 3," and "Spider-man 2" and they all delivered, but it's really been more a year of the quiet, little films. I seem to have spent much more time in art houses in 2004. Last year, all we really got was "Lost in Translation" and "The Triplets of Belleville." This year so far we've had "Girl with a Pearl Earring," "Tokyo Godfathers," Touching the Void," and "Kitchen Stories." Then came "The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra" which is easily one of the funniest films ever. We're talking laugh out loud, fall out of your seat, funny. "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" was a slightly flawed worked of genius. I loved it, but can see why it didn't do huge $$ at the box office. April took on an Irish kinda flair with "Intermission" and "Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself." Both were solid, well-acted little films. "Napoleon Dynamite" had the best marketing campaign of the year and has become an instant cult sensation. The studio had the good sense to re-release "Donnie Darko" and then of course there is my beloved "Garden State." So, what has promted this little art house recap you may ask? Well, it was the film I saw this past weekend. I don't even know how to begin to explain how wonderful "Hero" is. It's a beautiful film and I'd like to thank Quentin Tarantino for harassing Miramax into releasing it here in the US. It's basically an art house film that got the backing it deserved and it really paid off. Who would have thought that a sub-titled, Chinese-made picture would pull in $17 million it's opening weekend? I think that total will go up next week as word gets out too. Anyone who liked "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" will like this film, and honestly, I liked it better. So there, you go. Go see "Hero." I know, I took the long road to get to that destination, but in my world, the journey is what it's all about. :)

$3.2 million!!!

"Garden State" nearly doubled it's box office take last weekend, bringing in $3.2 million. This gives it a total gross of about $6.6 million. Not bad at all for a quiet little independent film. Congrats to Zach and the whole GS gang :)

Idle-Nap

I blame the Olympics for my sleep deprivation issues. Every night I go home with the intention (yeah, yeah, I know, "the road to Hell" and all that...) of going to bed at something resembling a reasonable hour. So far that has so not happened. The worst part is, I'm really not even watching "my" sport - i.e. the equestrian stuff. I'm watching swimming and gymnastics. Granted, men in lycra are generally worth losing some sleep over, but I'm so paying for it today, and we're only a week into these damn games. Diving is next week and I can't not watch diving. Those guys wear even less than the swimmers ;)

On an equestrian related note, I'm going to run away with Nicholas Touzaint of France. He's 24, he's beautiful, AND he rides. I'm thinking a road trip to the Rolex Kentucky 3-Day Event next spring is going to be in order. I'd really like to get some pics of Nicholas and besides I haven't really shot any good events since '96 so I'm long overdue for some new pictures.

Yay Friday! I honestly had my doubts about surviving this week...

Collateral State

So, I didn't quite make my overly ambitious goal of getting 6 movies done in 4 days. Oh well. Hopefully this weekend. There's nothing new opening that's worth seeing so that gives me additional time to pick up the ones I missed. I did get "Collateral" and "Garden State" seen. "Collateral" rocked. Tom looks hot with gray hair and he's a bad ass bad guy. I'm not normally a Jamie Foxx fan, but he did a good job as well. It was not totally predictable and all-in-all was definitely worth the price of admission.

What more is there to say about "Garden State?" This was my third trip home with Zach and honestly I find something new to enjoy every time I go. This is a truly phenomenal film. All the comparisons have already been made to things like "The Graduate" and to someone who has not seen the film, that may seem like a ballsy thing to say. It's not. "Garden State" IS that kind of a film. The way "The Graduate" spoke for the children of the late-60's and "The Breakfast Club" defined high school in the mid-80's, "Garden State" embodies a new generation's transition into the 21st century. The first time I saw it, I knew I loved the film, but admittedly was swayed by Zach's passion for the project. The second time through it truly began to hit me that I was watching something special; a film that needed to win awards and that I have recommended to everyone I know (and a few strangers even). Now, this third time, I realize that this film is not only special, but it is timeless. Iconic even. Ten, twenty, thirty years from now I think this is the film that everyone will look back on and say that it truly described who we are at this moment in our lives and at this moment in history. It is unique, and as anyone who has seen the film will tell you, that is a beautiful thing...

"You still want to compare fucked up families?"

Ok, so I took the "Personality Disorder Test" at 4Degreez.com

Here are the results:

Disorder	Rating
Paranoid:	High
Schizoid:	High
Schizotypal:	High
Antisocial:	High
Borderline:	Moderate
Histrionic:	Moderate
Narcissistic:	Moderate
Avoidant:	High
Dependent:	Moderate
Obsessive-Compulsive:	High
-- Personality Disorder Test - Take It! --

You can click on the name of the disorder for a description.
No one who knows me will be surprised by these results ;)

The quote in the subject is from "Garden State." Go see it, if you haven't already.

You're Gonna Need a Bigger Boat

Ok, so I have not had the motivation to write about my New York trip. That's not to say that it wasn't awesome, 'cause it was. I honestly just don't think I could do it justice from where I am right now. Go check out Lindy's account for the scoop:

http://gravityworks.blogspot.com/

On a different topic, I saw "Open Water" tonight. It was disturbing and not at all what I expected... I'm not sure exactly what I was expecting, but this wasn't it. It was a good film, very documentary-like, with an unexpected ending. I was talking to Steev today and said that just once, I'd like to go see a shark movie, where the sharks win. Well, what do you know? I actually got my wish. :)

I've seen nothing else since "Garden State" and "Donnie Darko" while I was in NYC, so this weekend will be a catch up one. Tentatively on the agenda are "The Village," "Collateral," "The Princess Diaries 2," "A Home at the End of the World," and "Garden State" for the third time. It's an optimistic list, to be sure, but it's doable. "Collateral" is definitely the one at the top of the list though.

So, that's it for now. I will try to come up with something more exciting to write next week. I'm just in sort of a "funk" right now... call it existential writer's block or something...

Woo Hoo!

Ok, I know I need to post the details of my NYC trip, but just don't have the time to do it right now. So, instead I'll just leave you with this little blurb from E! Online:

In limited release, Garden State bloomed strong. Fox Searchlight's R-rated you-can-go-home-again romantic comedy, written and directed by Scrubs' Zach Braff, who stars along with Natalie Portman and Peter Sarsgaard, had the week's best per-site average, $22,346 at nine locations, for a total of $201,115.

Suffice it to say that while in New York over the weekend, Lindy and I were glad to contribute to that total :)