The Air I Breathe...

While shopping at Target yesterday I came across a movie I hadn't heard of called, "The Air I Breathe" starring an all star cast including: Kevin Bacon, Brendan Fraser, Andy Garcia, Sarah Michelle Gellar, & Forest Whitaker.

A drama based on an ancient Chinese proverb that breaks life down into four emotional cornerstones: happiness, pleasure, sorrow and love. A businessman bets his life on a horse race; a gangster sees the future; a pop star (Gellar) falls prey to a crime boss; a doctor must save the love of his life.

Instead of buying it, I rented it. The film reminded me of "Crash" without all the racial dialogue. One of those movies that is shown with time not being sequential and the pieces fall into place at the end.

It was hard to follow at first, but it was a good story by the end.

The Wretched

Eric & I headed down to Lincoln last night to watch Skyline Entertainment's "The Wretched" directed by Dan Iske. This is a film Eric & I both saw at the 2008 Omaha Film Festival, but we wanted to check it out again. It is a very well done horror flick with a side of comedy if you will that was done with very little budget. Iske has a cinematic eye. The music was very fitting.

Check out the trailer...

www.thewretchedmovie.com
www.myspace.com/elegymovie

More than meets the eye...

Transformers...

As a child of the 80s, Transformers were one of my favorite toys and cartoons.

In July, there is a live action movie coming out Directed by Michael Bay. I just saw the trailer, very cool.

I still have some Transformers buried in a box in my basement, I think all of them have something broken.

http://movies.yahoo.com/feature/transformers.html

Reign Over Me...

Today I hit the matinee for "Reign Over Me" starring Adam Sandler & Don Cheadle.

I had some positive & negative reviews so I went to see for myself. I give it two thumbs up. I very deep movie about dealing with loss. Adam Sandler did a very good job...

There were a few lines that stuck out, but I can't remember what they are and IMDB doesn't have a lot of quotes from the movie listed.

Off the wall funny...

After my shift volunteering at the Omaha Film Festival I came back to check out "Mr. Dungbeetle"... a very funny off-the-wall comedy.

A troubled psychiatrist goes in search of five schizophrenics who have escaped from a local mental institution. Infiltrating their makeshift mountain outpost, the doctor comes face to face with his own fears, limitations, and forsaken hopes as he becomes acquainted with the patients and their humorously poignant struggles.

IMDB listing

View Clip

Good quote from the movie, "Life is worth the scary parts."

L' Ultimo Bacio...

One of my newest favorite films is "The Last Kiss" starring Zach Braff. I of course had to look it up on the Internet Movie Database after seeing it to learn more. I learned it was a remake of a foreign film in 2001 called "L' Ultimo Bacio". Blockbuster nor Hollywood video had it, so I looked to my roommate who has NetFlix. Sure enough, he put it in his rotation. After a few delayed weeks, it came today.

I just finished watching it, and let me tell you - I'm still in awe. It helped to know the gest of it from the American version as this was foreign version and I was stuck watching subtitles and the actors at the same time.

Let's just say, I ordered it from amazon so I can see it again and again. The script is powerful, the acting was well done, so was the directing and cinematography. It is an above average film about people trying to find themselves.

Here is my earlier blog about "The Last Kiss"...

Death & taxes...

I'm alive no worries, but I did my taxes this weekend.
Good news is that I can pay my recent home repair bills whenever that refund comes in.

Nothing extraordinary over the weekend. Sadly enough...
I turned chapter one of my current book Left Unsaid into a screenplay entitled, "Table for Two" and sent it off to Eric.

Eric sent me the rough script for our silent film, "Ante Up" and we chewed on the name of our feature film formally entitled, "Welcome Now" to "Life Unattended"... and speaking of movies, over the weekend I watched, "Facing the Giants", "Wicker Park", & "Sweet November".

Tonight is two hours of 24!

Yeah, (I agree) the above sounds like too much time in front of the tv...

Freedom Writers...

Last night, my pal Amy & I went to see "Freedom Writers" staring Hilary Swank. The film took a bit to really get going, but it ended up to be better than most of the reviews I read. It didn't have as much to do with writing as I thought, more about teaching students that no one thought could be taught.

Cool to know it is based on a true story and the stories of the students are published - The Freedom Writers Diary

The Last Kiss...

With the Blockbusker gift certificate from my aunt, I rented "The Last Kiss" starring Zach Braff from "Scrubs".

We all make choices. What's yours?
Have you ever felt uncertain?
Have you ever longed for more?
Have you ever wanted to escape?
Have you ever had doubts?

This movie was well done - script and acting wise. This is type of film that RoomMate Productions strives to make and maybe someday someone will compare one of our movies to a movie that is high on the list of many.

The film is a remake of Ultimo bacio, L' (2001)

WTC...

I rented "World Trade Center" - the movie was very intense. I can only try to imagine what it must have been like for the people in the planes, the towers, or the rescue teams that went in.

Well said in the plot summary on IMDB.

It's a story of the true heroes of that fateful time in the history of the United States when buildings would fall and heroes would rise, literally from the ashes to inspire the entire human race.

New release Tuesday...

Besides RoomMate Productions' release of "Kitty Cats & Exit Signs" and "Laundromat" was also "Miami Vice". The movie wasn't as action packed as I thought. I vaguely remember watching the tv series as a kid. Maybe I thought the movie would be like Bad Boys I & II, so my expectations were high.

Tonight is the fiction critique group meeting. I read and critiqued the second story that we are reviewing tonight. The first is going to be either Left Unsaid or Left Standing – I sent him (the moderator) both with instructions to send out Left Unsaid to the group since Left Standing is published, so we'll see.

What if...

Over the weekend I checked out Butterfly Effect II (the original was better - yet both were a bit odd). I've always been intriqued by time changing films like the Back to the Future trilogy and other 'what if' movies like Mr. Destiny and The Family Man and It's a Wonderful Life.
(What other movies am I missing that are similar to the movies above?)

If you had the ability to change one thing in the past, what would you change? What would you not change? (I'm still thinking)

"Some of the best lessons we ever learn are learned from past mistakes. The error of the past is the wisdom and success of the future."
~ Dale E. Turner

Stranger Than Fiction...

Jenn & I checked out "Stranger Than Fiction" last night. The movie reminded me of "Delirious". I'd highly recommend it. Good movie, funny, and some good insightful stuff at the end.
As an author... I had appreciation for the author's struggles to know what to do with a character.