Back To The Movies!
Well, with Saw IV coming out yesterday I knew there was my chance. I had wanted to see Into The Wild for well over a month now, but there wasn’t another film out that interested me. The Darjeeling Limited also came out Friday, but unfortunately, the newest Wes Anderson flick was playing at the “other” theatre (the theatre that didn’t have Into The Wild). So with my addiction to horror films, Saw IV was an easy choice since that was also at the same theatre.
So the way I see it, I went to see Into The Wild and it just so happens that Saw IV was on the way.
First off, Saw IV: there is not a single surprise in the film and not even a really good scare. The series has been drained since…well, Saw II. Saw III was terrible (AND too long at over 2 hours). Of course, what do you expect from a horror franchise that comes out with a sequel every year. I missed seeing Saw III in the theatre because I was in Africa…and fortunately, I didn’t miss anything.
Saw IV was very hard to understand. I may not be the brightest crayon in the box, but the film had some crazy-ass plot that I really cannot even start to describe. Yes, the “Jigsaw Killer” is dead, along with his helper girl-Marilyn Manson wanna be from earlier Saw films. But of course, that doesn’t mean that they cannot still cause trouble. The film may have had some good gore scenes aside from the opening dissection of the “Jigsaw Killer”, but because the editing was similar to modern day MTV music videos, flashes of what look like blood and guts are flickered across the screen at lightning speed. You think you saw something gross, but you’re not quite sure. I feel bad for the special effects crew who worked so hard, only to have their elaborate scenes lasting a few milliseconds.
Saw IV is better than Saw III, but not quite as good as the mediocre Saw II, and nowhere near as fresh as the original Saw. Geeeesus, did I really just type that sentence with a straight face???
Next: Into The Wild: a good film, but this was exactly what I expected it to be: a feel good, sappy, coming of age film dealing with a spoiled rotten kid who graduates from Emory University, donates his graduate school money to charity ($24,000), and heads west and eventually north to Alaska…just for the experience. He doesn’t tell his parents, sister, or friends (actually, they never even mentioned any friends he had before the “journey”). He hates his parents because they fought when he was a child (ahhhhh, poor kid!). His father was abusive to his mother, and that made little Christopher McCandless upset to the point that he just wanted to leave home and never look back, despite the fact that they really love him and miss him…he wants completely out of dodge, especially after his parents offered to buy him a new car as a graduation present. He refuses any form of technology or anything dealing with money, and acts like a little snot nosed kid who has gotten everything he ever wanted. At one point he even burns his money, which is really stupid (for many reasons aside from the obvious) because he later needs money…and of course he gets it from odd jobs here and there along the way. No problem!
It’s a true story however, and Christopher meets a slew of cool people along the way…and these characters are the REAL reason why Into The Wild is a good film. Vince Vaughn, Catherine Keener, and Kristen Stewart are the 3 major characters I enjoyed the most. Vince Vaughn does a good job of, well, not acting like Vince Vaughn in Wedding Crashers to put it bluntly. That was quite refreshing!
Ya know, I could easy relate to the idea of “to hell with technology and onward to nature” at one point in my life. In a way, Into The Wild was the story of me just before I joined the Peace Corps. After nearly dieing of continual weight loss combined with an ever present deteriorating mental health, I threw in the towel and came home. Poor Christopher never throws in the towel, but he ends up, in a way, miserable…ironically, because he was all alone, which was exactly what he wanted from the beginning.
The best character in the film is not Vince Vaughn, but nature itself. There are countless beautiful scenes that take your breath away. The film just makes you wanna go out, explore, travel, and see the world. And, thank God, it reminds you that you should at least tell your family and loved ones where you are and/or what you are doing.
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Who I'm Going To Vote For...Or Not
i will not vote for the clear republicans...Fred Thompson is really smart, and i like him, BUT he's too old and his wife looks like a exotic dancer which would NEVER work in the White House...and maybe i just like him because he was in Law and Order...Rudy Giuliani is okay, but he's kinda creepy and has too many mixed messages across the board, and he hides behind 9/11 too much...Ron Paul is silly, but he has a great idea and wants to get rid of the IRS completely, but he's really just Ross Perot in a bad disguise, and that's not good...Mitt Romney just feels like a Mormon minister who is on TV asking for money while looking up at God and sweating profusely, and that's not gonna work with me either....and finally, John McCain?...two words..."WAKE UP!"
i will not vote for the clear democrats either...Barack Obama had my attention for a long time, and then i listened to what he actually says, and it ain't much because he has no experience and uses VERY big generalizations without any detail...Hillary? well, Hillary is related to Bill, and Hillary wants BIG government and socialized medicine, which looks good on paper, but has yet to work without going bankrupt ANYWHERE in the world...side note: people cross the border ALL the time from Canada to get medical help HERE in America (please don't listen to Michael Moore, Sicko is only HALF the story...yes, i've seen it, as someone illegally downloaded it and put the entire movie on myspace not too long ago)...and John Edwards...good God, he hates lesbians and gays, and he just wants to recreate the Peace Corps and call it "Marshall Corps" to deal with similar issues, which in it of itself would be doing the same thing as the Peace Corps. ummm, you're name is John EDWARDS...NOT John KENNEDY.
so there ya have it! ohh wait..i never mentioned who i will be voting for.
well, i don't know..if that green party guy, Ralph Nader, would simply brush his hair and stop looking like he was just run over by a semi, then i might be interested.
there is a guy who is an independent, who was a republican but changed over lately...Mike Bloomberg, but he says he isn't gonna run for president and those independent tickets are such an unfortunate waste these days...maybe not for long (fingers crossed).
ya know, i never thought i would say this, but i really like Joe Lieberman..his own party ousted him for his views of the war in Iraq, and after he quit the democratic party, he still won as an independent in Connecticut! WOW! he still has my vote as of now, but like Bloomberg, he hasn't even announced he's running *sigh*
so where does that leave me? without a clue, but so far i know who i'm NOT supporting, so maybe that's a start.
Proper Introductions and To Hell With Myspace!
"hello...my name is sam and i'm an addict"
today is the 17th of june, 2007. you'll find me in a stage of life i'd rather not think about, let alone talk about. i'm 29, i'm single, i'm unemployed, i live at home with my parents, and i have no idea what to do next for the first time in a LONG time. so yeah, basically...i'm a loser.
not to sell myself too short...i graduated with a B.A in Communications in 1999. worked in radio for nearly 10 years, moved to Hawaii and spent almost 4 years there simply for the challenge of accomplishing a life-long goal i was continuously told was "out of touch with reality". i gave up paradise and i joined the Peace Corps and moved to a developing country in Africa no one has ever heard of (and never will) and learned the language, the culture, and re-established my gratitude for the endless luxuries i have as being an American citizen.
one could say that i have had an exciting life. i will not argue..but today, i find myself lost without words on which direction to take. i feel like i'm at the busiest intersection in New York City and my car has just died...not just stalled, not out of gas...literally died without notice...and there's endless traffic behind me breathing down my neck, blowing their horns, and shaking their fists out of disgust.
so...what the hell happened???
well, as i was in Lesotho, Africa, i became depressed after taking an anti-malarial medication i took when i went to Kenya on vacation. the medicine is called Mefloquine (also known as Lariam). apparently less than 1% of those who take Mefloquine experience symptoms that have been dubbed, "The Mefloquine Syndrome". The Mefloquine Syndrome encompasses severe neurological and psychological problems, like depression, anxiety, mood disorders, anger, etc. what was that? did someone say something about a lawsuit? nope...i signed a waver and thought i would take my chances with Mefloquine, but the Peace Corps did speak so highly of Mefloquine because of the so-called common side effect of "erotic dreaming". well, i didn't get any erotic dreaming...what i got felt like a bad acid trip and has turned into an unusual mental state where i'm still trying to figure out what's up and down, and what's black and white in this overly grey world.
so, in a nutshell, that's me and my story at this junction in life. all of my friends outside of myspace...as in real life friends..are married, or engaged, or parents, or all three...wait, ahh hell..you get the picture. people are jealous of me for my life experiences and i'm jealous of people for their ability to make sense out of life before they turned 30. i'll be 30 in two months and it's pretty damn scary to just...not have a clue.
ahhhh, this is NOT how i planned it...but so goes life.
