The Best Film of the Year

2007 saw the return of quality to Hollywood (though in relatively small proportions). Without doubt, the best film of the year-- the best film in the last 7 years, in fact-- is Atonement. I heard it described on the radio this morning as "sensuous and intelligent." That's exactly what the film is at its most bare-bones description.

I don't know about you, but when I see a film that is this viscerally moving, I can't use words to describe it; to do so would cheapen a beautiful experience between a human being and a work of art that no one else would be able to understand. Indeed, I would not attempt to grasp your personal experience with it. Would I ask you to express what your own existence means in a couple of paragraphs? Futile, I think.

Simply stated: go see this film. It's superb in so many ways and you don't have to have a film degree to appreciate it. Plus, James McAvoy is the finest actor of my generation. Period.

Other good and/or fun movies of 2007: Across the Universe, American Gangster, A Mighty Heart, Hairspray, Breach, I Am Legend, Becoming Jane (2006), Knocked Up, Transformers, Bella and Ratatouille.

I have yet to see the following films but I'm pretty sure I'm in for a treat: Juno, Sweeney Todd, No Country for Old Men, In the Valley of Elah, Gone Baby Gone, I'm Not There, The Savages, Eastern Promises, Persepolis, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, The Brave One, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly and There Will Be Blood. I'm sure there are others.

That's the wrap-up! I'll let you guys know when I get back into film criticism on Roxbusters.com.

EDIT: I just saw Once. It's right up there with Atonement. Lovely!

Benazir Bhutto and Other 2007 Insanity

None of us should be shocked that Benazir Bhutto was just assassinated in Pakistan, but the feeling is still akin to a swift kick to the stomach. I honestly don't know that much about Bhutto, but I felt a sense of well-being on her return to her country after years of exile. Perhaps Pakistan was headed in the right direction as a result of her gutsy comeback??? Now I feel the same way I did after Daniel Pearl's execution... sick.

I'm happy that 2007 is coming to a close. In all, things for me this year were "ok." But, the craziness at VA Tech, plus this apocalyptic worry about Global Warming, sent this year into a nervous frenzy. In addition, it was a sour year for my mother who deserves nothing but the best in life, and for her I am embittered.

Nevertheless, I traveled to Sydney in July, which was fantastic. My friends can't be beat! Plus, I spent 6 fun days in Scotland and fell in love with the country and people. In other news, Liza got married, a bunch of my friends got engaged, my sister seems to be doing well and all of us are healthy. Things could be worse.

For 2008: I have promised myself to lose between 35 and 40 pounds at the age of 29. It's time to get healthy. I also plan to sign up for the NYC Marathon and complete the run in a decent time come November. What else? De-stress and embrace new beginnings. Sydney in November for the Geegal 2005 reunion, a trip back to Scotland in the Spring (hopefully), and to find that elusive happiness.

Time's moving too fast. Let's hope it at least moves in a positive direction in 2008.

Andy Goldsworthy

A friend recently turned me on to Andy Goldsworthy, a Scottish/British sculptor who specializes in what could be termed environmentalist installation art. Think of it as performance art manifested through the creation of sculpture in mostly natural settings made of natural materials. I'd liken him to Christo except that Goldsworthy exhibits much less bravado. He also communicates with nature instead of conspicuously thrusting his influence upon it. His stuff's brilliant!

Rivers and Tides, a documentary on the artist, is available through online DVD rental. It's in my queue, it should be in yours.

Elections? Here's how you do it, Mate.

I read a cool little article in The Washington Post this Sunday; the U.S. elections process from an Aussie's perspective. Take a look: Elections? Here's how you do it, Mate.

Congratulations, Lucy!

Imagine my surprise when I visited SMH.com (Sydney Morning Herald) this morning and saw this: Fellow Madeira High School Class of 1997 graduate, Lucy Southworth, is getting married to Google's co-founder, Larry Page, in the Caribbean this weekend! Tremendous news! This girl goes from putting on a puppet show for kids with me at the Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center to becoming a Ph.D. in Biomedical Informatics at Stanford & Google bride in 10 years time? Not too shabby!

Congratulations to Lucy! She was always super smart and very sweet. That Larry Page is one lucky guy!

This guy's my hero

My homeboy father has always been my hero, but he gets an honorable mention on my blog this week for recovering ALL of the Scotland photos I thought I had lost.

When I returned to the U.S. on Tuesday night (last week), I was horrified to discover that my camera's memory card was only registering 3 photos of over 150 that I took. The rest read "picture error." After about 7 attempts at recovery on 4 different computers, I started bawling and was inconsolable, mostly because this was a brand new camera and memory card. But, thanks to free software my father was able to download, ALL of the photos I've ever taken on this camera since it was purchased were recovered, even the ones I had previously deleted! Genius!!!

My faith in technology has been restored. And, as always, I owe a debt of gratitude to this guy pictured here. THANK YOU, you lovely bastard!